Watch Those Carbs!

I've been trying to cut carbohydrates where I can and up my protein and it's been difficult to say the least.  I love eating chips and salsa, peanut butter on GF toast, rice or GF pasta with dinner, corn tortillas with cheese... Now if I have a craving for a sandwich I have decided to exchange the GF bread with lettuce.  There are all sorts of lettuce wraps these days in restaurants, usually with junk in them we can't eat!  Here is a sandwich wrap recipe I just invented, hope you like it!

Chicken Salad Wrap

servings: 2

Ingredients:

4 large Romaine lettuce leaves

1 (5 oz.) can GF chunk chicken in water, drained

1/4 c. plain yogurt

1/2 celery stalk, chopped fine

1/4 c. cucumber, seeded and chopped fine

1/2 avocado, thinly sliced

1/4 tsp. dried dill weed or 1/2 tsp. fresh dill

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:  Wash the lettuce leaves, pat dry and divide among two plates.  In a small bowl combine the rest of the ingredients except the avocado.  Place the sliced avocado on each of the four lettuce leaves.  Scoop out an equal amount of the chicken salad and put on each leaf.  Roll up and enjoy!

Apple-icious

I love making homemade apple sauce!  It's especially on my mind as autumn is soon to be here.  Apple sauce is so versatile and easy to make, plus, you can add other fruits to the apples to make an even more delicious apple sauce.  Hope you enjoy this version...

Plum-Apple Sauce

Ingredients:
4 red apples, peeled, cored and chopped
2 plums, peeled, pitted and chopped
juice of 1/2 a lemon
1/8 tsp. allspice

Directions:  Combine all but the allspice in a medium sized pot. Heat on medium-high for 3 minutes.  Reduce heat to simmer and cover, cook for 20-25 minutes, adding the allspice halfway through cooking.  Remove from heat and let cool slightly.  Puree in a food processor until desired consistency.

Hearty Healthy Chili

One thing about gluten-free eating is that you frequently have to modify recipes.  And it's a pleasure to find one that doesn't even need changing.  The following is one I found in Family Circle magazine, and although the ingredients don't need to be modified, the cooking instructions did.  Plus, I added a couple other ingredients I thought were necessary.  Next time I make it I think I will add another jalapeno - I like things spicy!  Hope you enjoy it!

Turkey & White Bean Chili

Ingredients:

1 Tb. olive oil

2 cans (15.5 oz. each) Great Northern beans, drained and rinsed

1 pkg. (20.8 oz.) lean ground turkey

2 jalapenos, seeded and chopped

2 green bell peppers, seeded and chopped

1 poblano pepper, seeded and chopped

1 large onion, chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

2 1/2 tsp. cumin

3/4 tsp. ground coriander

2 c. GF chicken broth

3 Tb. fresh lime juice

1/4 c. chopped cilantro

1/2 tsp. salt

4 green onions, thinly sliced

Directions:  Set aside 1 cup of beans.  Heat a large pot on med-high and add olive oil.  Break up ground turkey into pot and cook until lightly browned.  Add onion, peppers and garlic and stir occasionally, cook for 5 min.  Add beans, 2 tsp. cumin, 1/2 tsp. coriander and chicken broth.  Stir to combine.  Place lid on pot and reduce heat to simmer.  Cook 1 hour.  Mash the reserved beans and add to the pot.  Also add 1/2 tsp. cumin, 1/4 tsp. coriander, lime juice, cilantro and salt.  Sprinkle with green onions and serve immediately.  Add a dollop of sour cream if desired (optional).

EGGS FOR BREAKFAST

There are so many unnecessary and harmful ingredients put in foods today that's it's no wonder they make us ill.  For a while I didn't eat eggs.  They seemed to make me sick at times.  Then I switched to organic, cage-free eggs and had no problem at all.  If you have local farms where you and the stores can get fresh, organic produce and meat products, then lucky you!  Switching out some of your chemically altered foods to organic is the way to go.  Here is a simple 3-egg omelet that is a good start to anyone's day - enjoy!

Southwestern
Veggie Omelet
1 serving

Ingredients:
3 organic, cage-free eggs
1 tsp. butter
1/2 Roma tomato, thinly sliced
1/3 avocado, chopped
1 Tb. shredded cheddar cheese
Salt and pepper

Directions:

Heat small pot on medium-low heat.  Add butter and coat the bottom.  Add beaten eggs and cook on low for one minute.  Sprinkle in the cheese and place the sliced tomatoes in the egg mixture.  Add a dash or two of salt and pepper.  Cook until almost firm throughout.  Quickly toss the omelet with a spatula to finish cooking, about 1 minute.  Sprinkle some more salt and pepper on this side.  Remove to a plate and add avocado to the top.  Optional:  add a little salsa on top.

Summer Salad

Going gluten-free is a journey of rediscovering food and appreciating what you put in your mouth.  Two of my favorite foods are shrimp and avocado.  Here I included them in a tasty salad that's great during those hot summer days.  Serve cold or room temperature.

Zesty Island Shrimp Salad
servings:  2

Ingredients:
2 c. cooked shrimp, shelled
1 avocado, diced
1 tomato, seeded and diced
1/4 c. red onion, chopped fine
1/2 cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped
2-3 Tb. olive oil
Juice of half a lemon
1/8 tsp. each salt, pepper and ground coriander seed

Directions:  Combine all in a bowl.  Toss gently to mix.  Serve!

I Love Bananas

BANANA MUFFINS
(makes 12 muffins)

Ingredients:

1/4 c. butter, softened
1 c. organic turbinado sugar
2 eggs
2 large bananas, mashed
1 tsp. GF vanilla extract
2 c. Bob's Red Mill GF All Purpose Baking Flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt

Directions:  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Place paper liners in cupcake/muffin tin.  Combine butter, sugar, eggs, bananas and vanilla in large bowl and mix thoroughly.  Blend flour, baking powder and salt and add to banana mixture. Mix until combined. Evenly distribute batter in twelve muffin cups.  Bake in oven for 20-22 min.  Add a cream cheese icing or spread with soft butter.  Enjoy!

Pizza - YUM!

YES, YOU CAN HAVE PIZZA! (you just have to know where to find it).  For me, one of the hardest foods to give up was pizza.  There wasn't a tasty gluten-free pizza in existence way back when I discovered my intolerance.  Luckily, there were people out there who listened to our demands and have created excellent alternatives.  There are now several different brands of gluten-free frozen pizzas in some grocery stores as well as online.  My favorites are the ones from Gluten Free & Fabulous.  I can even find them in my local Smith's store.  They have only two of the five choices right now, and they are:  Pepperoni and Pesto Margherita.  All other versions you can buy from their website.  Also available are gluten-free pizza dough mixes where you can make pizza at home.  I have yet to try it, but I will update you when I do!  In Las Vegas, I know of only two restaurants where you can order a gluten-free pizza.  One is Sammy's Woodfire Pizza and the other is Mark Rich's New York Pizza & Pasta.  Sammy's has more gourmet style pizzas while Mark Rich's has traditional kinds.  Lucky for me, they are both located less then three miles from my house - Yipee!  Check back for more taste-tested gluten-free fare....