Asia Kitchen

At the gym yesterday, Justin and I looked at each other and said, "What are we going to have for dinner?" I responded saying I was in the mood for either Asia Kitchen or pancakes, too completely opposite things. We agreed upon Asia Kitchen which offers numerous GF items. While they have a variety of dishes, I still always get Pad Thai with chicken.

My to-go container clearly labeled Celiac.

I think we eat Asia Kitchen at least 1-2 times per month.  Everything is so amazingly delicious.

I Heart Donuts, Sometimes...

As I went through the mail today, I noticed an ad for Dunkin' Donuts. They were advertising heart shaped donuts filled with creme for Valentine's Day. Mmm...I thought to myself, what I wouldn't give for one of those. Not even two seconds later, my mind fluttered full of flashbacks of stomachaches, diarrhea, and of course rancid smelly farts!

This past weekend, Justin and I made our monthly trip to Whole Foods to stock up on specialty gluten free items. A month ago I had tried some kinnikinnick donuts that tasted amazing. I wanted to try a different kind, so I picked out glazed original donuts. I actually didn't realize until now that I had not bought the same brand. Glutino has some great products though, so I would have expected more.

At first, I thought the box was clever, opening similar to gluten filled donut boxes. But now I think all it does is allow for freezer burn to occur more quickly. Plus right after I opened the box for the first time, one of the sides ripped in the wrong spot.

I was utterly disappointed that I had spent $5.99 on this box of donuts. After heated for the 15 - 20 seconds that the directions called for, the donut was not heated evenly through out. In fact many spots were mushy. There was not much flavor at all, maybe completely doused in icy would have made a tasty treat.

While these did not make my taste buds dance, of course I'll still finish the box of them. I can't bare to waste the dollar per donut. Next time I will make sure I buy kinnikinnick donuts.

Good News!

I finally got a hold of my doctor a week or so ago.  My iron levels and ferritin levels are rising!  No more iron infusions for this girl.  She didn't tell me the exact count because I missed the call and she left a voicemail, but good news regardless.

Lettuce Wraps

A couple of Saturdays ago, Justin and I were raiding the refrigerator for something to eat for lunch. We had some lettuce, which we had bought with the intention of making lettuce wraps, but with lunch meat turkey. There was some chicken defrosted in the fridge so I thought chicken would be prefect in lettuce wraps.  Hmmm, I wondered what else did we have on hand that I could quickly mix in the wrap? San-J peanut sauce! I shredded the chicken with a fork, marinated it in the sauce for a few minutes, and then began to saute it. Once the chicken was cooked, I simply put a little with a few carrots in a piece of lettuce. They were quick, easy, and delicious.

Edamame-Black Bean Salad

I always receive emails from Betty Crocker, one featured this Edamame-Black Bean Salad.  I figured it could be gluten free as long as I checked all the ingredients.  Its basis included fresh products like tomatoes, onions, peppers, and beans.  I forgot to buy green onions, so I used red onions instead.  I took some time on Sunday to make it, so it could last through out the week as a healthy snack.  It had lots of fiber and protein; it tasted pretty good too.

It was a colorful salad.

EEk Pancakes!

Pancakes were ruined for me early in my journey of eating gluten free.  Justin and I usually made big breakfasts on Saturdays and Sundays, which usually consisted of pancakes or waffles since I don't really like eggs.  We grabbed a box of gluten free pancake mix from the commissary, to make a big breakfast one Saturday.  The mix smelled like angel food cake mix.  The pancakes were a bust!  They weren't fluffy, didn't taste like pancakes, and required the whole box for 10 pancakes!  I knew it would require trying different brands to find a good one.  But in the back of my head, I thought maybe all pancake mixes taste that horrid.

I knew Bisquick came out with a gluten free mix.  I never liked pancakes from Bisquick as a kid, but wanted to give the mix a try anyways. The majority of the time we shop at the commissary to get our groceries because it's cheaper and closer. We'll make a Whole Foods, Sun Harvest, or Central Market trip about once every month to stock up on specialty items.  Since Bisquick was a newer product of course the commissary didn't carry it.  

Last weekend we went to Houston to celebrates Justin's grandpa's 79th birthday. I was ecstatic when grandma gave me some GF Bisquick that she had found at Walmart. It's an amazing thing when people think of you and get something GF for you!  I couldn't wait to get home to try it.

Yay, my own GF Bisquick to try!

In fact, Sunday when we returned home I insisted that we try pancakes for dinner made by the GF Bisquick. I added some blueberries to the mix.

Ready to eat.

When I took my first bite, I instantly fell in love.  Pancakes that taste like pancakes!  Since I've been completely gluten free for 5 months, I always wonder if my taste buds have changed.  Justin is there to keep me in check. While he eats GF with me at home, he'll occasionally have some gluten at work or if we go out somewhere. He didn't think they were amazing, but he did think they were definitely better than the other ones we tried.  

Monday night we ran to the commissary to get a few groceries for the week. What do you think they had there?  GF Bisquick! I squealed to myself in the aisle with excitement.  I threw a box in our cart, because I've seen other recipes that use Bisquick that I want to try out.  

Muddy Buddies!

An oldie, but a goodie!  Muddy buddies aka puppy chow takes me back to after high school dances.  It seemed no matter which house we were at, the temptuous snack always appeared.  I decided to make the snack because I was craving something sweet.  Being the end of the week, our stock of food was depleted and nothing was seeming to fill the hole.  Late Friday night I whipped up some muddy buddies in about 5 minutes.

Of course I had multiple boxes of Chex on hand.

The recipe from the back of the box, only requires peanut butter, chocolate chips, butter, vanilla, powdered sugar, and Chex.  Quick and easy, with use of the microwave.

The final product!