Friday, November 25, 2016

Sauteed asian salad

Oh, God. I need vegetables. I need a deep cleanse. I need to walk 5,000 miles.

This year a very indulgent trip to Texas wine country (to celebrate my sister's quarter quell birthday) took the off-ramp smoothly right into Thanksgiving, and I embraced every fat second of it.

After steadily guzzling great wine and grazing on rich foods for a few days, I feel like I'm on the verge of gout or heart disease. A bit of an exaggeration, but the truth is I feel fat and bloated and not great.

So today my body is begging for vegetables, fish oil capsules, and lots of water. I haven't exactly been to the grocery store lately, so after a bit of black Friday shopping (purely to get steps), I stuck my head in the fridge. I shifted aside the gravy-laden leftovers and searched for the vegetables that languished in the crisper while I noshed on cakes and buttery mashed potatoes and honey glazed ham. (Mmm, ham.)

I give you this big ass bowl of vegetable love. It's beautiful.

sauteed cabbage asian salad gluten free

I highly encourage a loose interpretation of this recipe. Use up your sad veggies! Everything gets new life after a deep sautee with garlic. Even limp celery.

Sauteed Asian Salad

Olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 carrot, cut into matchsticks
2 stalks of celery, diced
2 T. water chestnuts, chopped (from a can)
1/8 wedge of red cabbage, chopped
a sprinkle of sesame seeds
1/8 wedge of iceberg lettuce, chopped

Sautee everything but the lettuce in olive oil.

sauteed cabbage asian salad gluten free

Put the sauteed veggies on top of the lettuce. Top with a bit of sriracha sauce, a sprinkle of GF soy sauce, and a big squeeze of fresh lemon juice.

Start to feel like a human being again. Let go of the Jabba mentality. Do your best to maintain until the next wave of holiday gluttony hits.

[Namaste, bitch.]

Tuesday, November 15, 2016

Menu

gluten free menu

This week's menu goes up after fumes from refinishing my kitchen cabinets have taken over my brain. Plus wine. Excuse any typos.

Second Breakfasts- boiled eggs, cottage cheese with fruit

Tuesday- HEB Meal Simple- I lovveee these and a lot of them are gluten free. So easy, I just have to pick a side. I ended up with some sort of basil beef feta pinwheel.
Wednesday- Burbon chicken and salads
Thursday- Black bean enchiladas
Friday- Salmon (another HEB Meal Simple)
Saturday- Oh WAIT. That's our 4th wedding anniversary! I'm not cooking!
Sunday- Tuna melts and tomato soup

Saturday, November 12, 2016

Chicken Sweet Potato Kabobs

Ok so I tried this recipe on a whim because I'm tired of the same old chicken. And it was really good!

The spice rub is spot on and the glaze complements it perfectly. It caramelized a little bit on the sweet potatoes and made them taste like candied yams. It's got a bit of a spicy kick, which worked really well. I'd use the spice rub again, and I'd make this recipe again. Even for company.

 gluten free sweet potato chicken kabobs

I did modify the recipe a bit, so I re-posted it with my changes.

Chicken Sweet Potato Kabobs

The basics:

2 large sweet potatoes
2 boneless, skinless, chicken breasts, cut into 2-inch pieces
1/2 medium red onion, cut into 1½-inch chunks and layers separated
8 (12-inch) bamboo skewers

Spice Rub:

2 t. garlic salt
2 t. chili powder
1 t. salt
1 t. pepper
1 t. cumin
1 t. paprika
¼ t. crushed red pepper

Glaze:
1/3 c. honey
2 t. balsamic vinegar

Instructions

Soak the bamboo skewers in water.

Clean the sweet potatoes and pierce with a fork. Microwave on the baked potato setting.

Mix the spice rub in a bowl. Mix the glaze in a separate bowl. Set aside.

When the potatoes are done, let them cool for a minute while you chop the onion.

Peel the potatoes and cut into cubes. Season with salt and pepper.

Pour a bit of olive oil in a medium bowl. Throw the chicken chunks in the bowl and top with the spice rub. Mix with your hands. You're going to have to get your hands all chickeny anyway when you make the skewer.

Make kabobs by alternating chicken, sweet potato, and onion. Place on a cookie sheet and pour the glaze on top.

I don't know how to work the grill. So I set my oven to 350-400ish* and cooked for appx 30 minutes until the chicken read >165 degrees with the meat thermometer. Served with broccoli and cauliflower.

gluten free sweet potato chicken kabobs

*My oven is 30 years old and doesn't maintain temperature, so that's the best I can do. I'm literally ordering a new oven tomorrow.

Wednesday, November 9, 2016

Menu

gluten free menu

Howdy. Today's my weekend, so I spent it shopping at H&M, drinking cocktails, and doing laundry. After this I'll take a nap, watch some tv, and get started on dinner.

2nd Breakfast- Breakfast tacos that I made last week and froze. Easy peasy.

Wednesday- Pizza and salad
Thursday- Chicken and sweet potato kabobs
Friday- Black bean enchiladas
Saturday- Italian pasta soup
Sunday- Tuna melts
Monday- Someone else is cooking.

Wednesday, November 2, 2016

Chicken, ham, swiss rollups

gluten free chicken cordon blue





Ready for noms that look impressive but are really easy?

I loosely followed this recipe for Chicken, ham, and swiss roll ups from Cooking Light, but obviously omitted the bread crumbs and used chopped pecans instead.

Served with roasted cabbage.

P.S. This might make a fun appetizer; wrapping the ham and cheese around chicken strips or nuggets.