Melt in Your Mouth Chicken

This was one of the easiest chicken recipes I've ever made! You may have seen this pin floating around Pinterest lately (which is where I got it from) and it definitely did not disappoint! The husband really liked it as well! Next time I will add a little garlic powder to the mix. Hope you enjoy it too!

What you need

- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1/2 C greek yogurt (original recipe called for mayonnaise but I didn't want the calories)
- 1/4 C grated parmesan cheese
- 1/2 tsp seasoned salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper

*Yep that's all you need! Easy!!

Directions

- Combine the yogurt, cheese, salt and pepper in a bowl

 - Stir well until mixture is fairly smooth

- Spread mixture evenly on the top and sides of the chicken breasts (I topped ours with a little more parmesan cheese)

- Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes and the top of the chicken is golden brown

- I served this with quinoa/rice and green beans. It was awesome and the husband asked to have it again! Score for the wife!

Chicken Noodle Soup

Well, I've officially brought fall into my house. Now in Florida we don't really have a true fall season, so I have to do some manipulating in order to get my brain to think that there is a bit of chill in the air. The other night there was a slight breeze and it actually felt "nice" outside so I knew what I had to do. I lit my pumpkin spice candle, turned on some Frank Sinatra and made chicken noodle soup. And it just so happened that I was battling a really sore throat so soup was definitely a good decision. The husband really liked this version of chicken noodle soup, although he did say that he isn't use to all the vegetables. Interpretation: he likes Campbells canned chicken noodle soup. You know the kind I mean. With the incredibly salty chicken broth, the straight noodles and the itty bitty pieces of a tastes like chicken substance. Yuck. This was super easy, start to finish in about 30 minutes, and gave us leftovers for the week. I don't think the husband will ever eat Campbells again!

What you need

- 1 small onion, chopped
- 4 small red potatoes, cubed
- 2 carrots, chopped
- 2 stalks celery, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 cups chicken broth
- fresh herbs (I used rosemary and basil)
- 1 cup cubed chicken
- 1/2 T poultry seasoning
- 2 cups gf short pasta






Directions

- Heat a bit of coconut oil in a large pot. Add the onion, garlic and potatoes and stir.

- Add the celery and carrots and cook for 2-3 minutes

- Add in the chicken broth, herbs and poultry seasoning. Simmer for 15 minutes

- Add in the chicken and pasta. Cover the pot and allow the noodles to cook.

- I used these cute little corkscrew quinoa noodles and they were great!

- Taste the soup and add more seasoning if needed. Top with some parmesan cheese and serve with garlic bread!

Pasta, Bread and Snacks...oh my!

It's been a while since I've done a post about products I like. So as you might suspect, this is a post about products I like! For those of you who may be new to gluten-free living, I know how easy it is to feel overwhelmed and what a struggle it can be to find replacements for things. A lot of people don't realize how hard it is to find gluten-free items that don't taste like cardboard or that aren't filled with tons of sugar and fat. These products are ones that I've been using for a while so I trust them. I'm know there are other kinds out there, maybe even better than the ones I use, but once I found something that I liked (and even more importantly that the husband liked) I stopped looking. This is a list of simple staples that I always try to keep on hand so that I'm never caught in a pinch come lunch or dinner time. I hope it helps you and gives you some products to try!

Pasta
We eat pasta at least once a week. With my work schedule I need easy and simple meals 3 nights a week that take 20 minutes or less. Pasta is always a great choice for us. We both love it and it's easy to make meatless pasta dishes if you're trying to reduce your meat intake (which we are!). We usually have Spaghetti once a week (usually Monday nights) and Broccoli Alfredo another night.

For spaghetti I use Ancient Harvest Quinoa spaghetti style noodles:

These noodles are really great for spaghetti. They hold up well, but you just want to be careful with the cooking time. If you cook them too long they can start to get mushy and fall apart a bit. A great thing about these noodles is that they are made from quinoa so they are full of protein, which is especially good if you are making meatless spaghetti. I like these better than the long rice noodles.

For the alfredo pasta and most other pasta dishes I usually go with Tinkyada Brown Rice Penne:

This pasta has awesome texture. In addition to the broccoli alfredo I've also used it in most of my other pasta dishes. The husband really likes this kind as well. Again, as with most rice pastas you want to make sure you follow the recommended cooking time since the texture will change if they are under or over cooked. 

Bread

I actually don't eat bread very often. Occasionally I'll have a piece of toast with dinner, but I rarely make sandwiches for myself anymore. I usually keep a loaf of Udi's whole grain GF bread in the freezer and I can make it last a while. The pieces are smaller than regular bread...ok they are much smaller but if you're trying to cut carbs then that's actually a good thing!

I also really like Udi's plain bagels. I keep them frozen and then thaw them out for 30 seconds in the microwave, and then toast them and top with cream cheese or jelly. They can be a little dry if you toast too much, but when you are really craving a bagel and "schmear" that is easy to overlook!

Snacks

I think snacks can be some of the hardest things to adjust to when going gluten-free. At least it was hard for me! I'm definitely a salty over sweet kinda girl so not being able to have pretzels, cheezits and wheat thins anymore was devastating! Although I've tried to get away from most conventional snack foods like crackers and chips, I still get cravings for something crunchy and salty. Here are some great gluten-free snacks that I have come to love. 

I love these multi-seed crackers. I have featured them before on the blog. They sell them in bulk at Costco but also smaller bags at Publix and Whole Foods. I like them plain, with hummus, or with some cheddar cheese. YUM.

These rice chips are fantastic. They have multiple flavors and they are rice, not corn. I've only seen small bags at Publix but they do go on sale every once in a while. The husband likes these too!

I really like these veggie straws. They are made from potato, spinach, and tomato and are lightly salted. I like them just as much as chips (but the husband doesn't). These are also sold in bulk at Costco in individual bags which are great for lunch boxes and picnics!

These are my second favorite crackers. They are on the expensive side because of the ingredients, but they are delicious! They come in a variety of flavors, are pretty much available at all grocery stores and definitely satisfy my salty craving. I like eating these plain but are good with hummus or any other kind of dip also.








Some other natural snacks that I enjoy are:
- Celery and peanut butter
- Rice cakes with nutella and bananas
- Carrot sticks and hummus (try my red pepper hummus)
- Trail mix
- Granola  (find my recipe here)
- Any fresh fruit (We get Orlando Organics fruit delivery every other week. They are awesome!)


I know this post is long, but I wanted to be thorough in my suggestions! Do you have any favorite gluten free products that you use? I would love to hear them!

I promise I'll have some recipes coming up soon! Chicken Noodle Soup, Melt in your mouth Chicken, and Dirty Rice with Sausage are just a few in the lineup...not to mention some yummy apple recipes just in time for fall!

Penne a la Betsy

As I mentioned in my last post, the husband loves shrimp. This is another fabulous shrimp recipe from the Pioneer Woman that I have made many times. This was the first time that I made it with gluten free pasta though and it was terrific! This is a really good company meal as well (in fact I will be making it again tomorrow night when we have friends over!) I've substituted chicken for the shrimp or you could leave out meat all together and add some vegetables like zucchini, eggplant and peppers. Yum!

What you need:

- 1/2 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 1/2 lb GF penne pasta
- 2 T butter
- 1 T olive oil
- 1 small onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 C white wine (you can sub broth)
- 1 8 oz can tomato sauce
- 1/2 C heavy cream
- Fresh parsley
- Fresh basil
- salt and pepper




Directions:

- Cook the pasta until al dente, drain and set aside

- Heat 1 T of butter and olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the shrimp and cook until they just start to turn pink. Do not overcook them! Remove and let cool.

- Dice your onion and mince your garlic

- Add to the same skillet you used to cook the shrimp and add a bit more butter and olive oil if needed. Cook until the onions begin to turn translucent and the garlic is fragrant

- Add in the white wine and stir the bottom of the pan really well to scrape up the browned pieces. Let the wine cook for a few minutes stirring occasionally. If you aren't a wine person or prefer not to use it, you can substitute the same amount of chicken broth.

- After the wine has cooked down a bit, add in the can of tomato sauce and stir well

- Add in the heavy cream and stir

- As the sauce simmers a bit, chop up the cooled shrimp into bite sized pieces and add to sauce

- Add some salt and pepper. Chop up some fresh parsley and fresh basil and add to sauce. I ended up using about 1/8 C of each herb. Using the fresh herbs really finishes out the dish and adds great flavor so don't skip them!

- Add in the pasta and stir to combine everything. Top with some grated parmesan cheese if you have it and enjoy! As I mentioned before, this is really yummy with chicken as well!

Tuscan Bean Soup with Shrimp

My husband absolutely loves shrimp. I mean really loves them. So I'm always looking for good recipes that use shrimp. This particular one is another from the Pioneer Woman. I didn't have everything on hand that her recipe calls for so I had to substitute a few things and also added some of my own. It turned out really well and the husband and I had lots of leftovers for the rest of the week! I know shrimp sounds a little odd, so if you don't like shrimp you can always substitue chicken or just leave a meat protein out all together. It's plenty filling without it! Enjoy!


What you need

- 1/2 pound shrimp, peeled and tails removed
- 1 small onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 stalks celery, sliced
- 1 C carrots, chopped
- 2 T tomato paste
- 1 tsp red pepper flakes
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 can diced tomatoes (15oz)
- 1/2 C dry white wine
- 4 C broth (I used a mix of chicken and veg)
- 2 cans Great Northern Beans (rinsed)
- 2 C baby spinach
- 1/4 C fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 tsp lemon juice



Directions

- Over medium heat in a large pot or dutch oven, heat a bit of oil (I used coconut)

- Add the onion and garlic and cook until translucent and fragrant

- Add in the chopped celery and carrots

- Add in the tomato paste and stir well

- Add the red pepper flakes and oregano

- Add the white wine and scrape up the browned pieces from the bottom of the pan

- Add the can of diced tomatoes and the juice

- Add the rinsed white beans and stir well

- Add the broth and a bit of salt and pepper

- Let the soup simmer for about 20-25 minutes, stirring occasionally

- When the soup has about 5 minutes left, go ahead and prepare the shrimp

- In a medium skillet, melt 2 T of butter (or oil but I like the butter flavor on shrimp)

- Add in the shrimp, parsley and lemon juice

- Cook until the shrimp turn pink and set aside

- Add in the baby spinach just before serving the soup

- Serve up the soup and add some shrimp on top. I also added some grated parmesan cheese.

Enjoy!

Do you know what you're eating?

I'm taking a break from posting recipes this week because I REALLY want to share this post with you all. Now, for those of you who aren't eating organic and hormone free, this post is especially for you! I know sometimes "organic" can be a scary thing. Maybe when you hear organic you immediately think "Oh I could never buy organic. It's way too expensive and most organic foods are weird. I mean isn't organic like tofu and bean sprouts?" Let me put your mind at peace. Instead when you hear organic, think healthy. I am convinced that eating organic and clean is the best way to jumpstart a healthy eating lifestyle. By making simple changes to the produce and meat you buy you can naturally eliminate SO many things that shouldn't be going into your body. Seriously. Listen up people. Or you will regret it later, I promise.

The husband and I made the decision about a year ago to eat as organic as possible. This was before I found out about my gluten intolerance but having made this switch first really did make going gluten free a lot easier. What helped us make the decision were two documentaries, "Food Inc." and "Forks over Knives." (Both are available for instant streaming on Netflix by the way...watch them!) These two documentaries do a great job of explaining the food industry and the dangers of eating processed and non-organic foods. They do a much better job explaining it than I ever could so just watch them. It will make you change your mind about eating organic.

Now, organic things are more expensive. I know, it seems unfair that the things that are better for everyone are more expensive but that's how the world works unfortunately. So, my new job was figuring out how to keep my husband from freaking out over the grocery receipt and still feel good about the food we were eating. It turns out that you don't have to buy EVERYTHING organic, but instead should focus on the foods that contain the most pesticides and artificial ingredients and start buying those organic. Also, as you will find out if you watch the documentaries, conventional meat has gross levels of hormones, additives and preservatives in them. Even name brands like Tyson and Perdue have hormones. The husband and I only buy organic, hormone free chicken. They sell it in bulk at Costco and it's wonderful! We really can tell a difference, and while it is more expensive we are considering it an investment in our health. You only get one body...take care of it! To help you figure out what to buy here's a list of the pesticide levels found in produce. The lower the number, the higher the pesticide level. In other words: low number = buy organic, high number = buy conventional. We just started using a produce deliver service (Orlando Organics) that delivers organic, locally farmed produce right to your door. It's fantastic!

Have a great week everyone! And I'll be back to posting recipes next week!

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Apples

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Celery

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Sweet bell peppers

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Peaches

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Strawberries

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Nectarines - imported

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Grapes

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Spinach

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Lettuce

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Cucumbers

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Blueberries - domestic

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Potatoes

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Kale/collard greens

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Cherries

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Hot peppers

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Pears

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Nectarines - domestic

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Green beans

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Plums - imported

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Blueberries - imported

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Carrots

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Raspberries

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Summer squash

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Oranges

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Broccoli

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Green onions

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Bananas

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Honeydew melon

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Tomatoes

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Cantaloupe - imported

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Cauliflower

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Papaya

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Plums - domestic

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Winter squash

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Mushrooms

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Watermelon

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Grapefruit

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Sweet potatoes

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Cantaloupe - domestic

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Kiwi

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Eggplant

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Mangoes

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Asparagus

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Sweet peas - frozen

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Cabbage

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Avocado

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Pineapples

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Sweet Corn

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Onions