Awesomest Salad Ever!!

Hi again! It's been awhile since I've posted and well, I have alot of excuses. Mainly the fact that my Sjogren's Syndrome has been acting up, and my eyes were driving crazy! Plus my oldest little girl just turned 4, so I've been busy planning (and executing) her party. Now that you know where I've been, let's get to this wonderfully awesome salad and the recipe for it.

My husband and I absolutely LOVE DisneyWorld!! The first time I ever went was on my honeymoon and I couldn't believe how great it was. Once Todd made us reservations at The Brown Derby. It's a neat restaurant at MGM/Hollywood Studios and they have this great Cobb Salad. They serve it as an appetizer for 2, but I could really eat the whole thing. My sister found a recipe online for it (and the dressing), made it, and voila! It was wonderful! I've since made it a couple of times a month for dinner and made it for my daughter's birthday party. Since everyone has asked me for the recipe...here it is!!


The Brown Derby's Cobb Salad with French Dressing
Adapted from: Allears.net

Salad
1/2 head of Iceberg Lettuce
1/2 head of Romaine Lettuce
1 C cooked Chicken Breast
2 medium tomatoes (blanched & peeled)
6 strips cooked Bacon
1 Avocado
3 hard boiled Eggs
1 C crumbled Blue Cheese
2 Tbsp Chives

Dressing
1/2 C Water
1/2 tsp Sugar
1 1/4 Tbsp Salt
1 1/2 tsp Worchestire Sauce (make sure it's GF)
1 clove Garlic (minced)
1/2 C Red Wine Vinegar
Juice of 1/2 Lemon
1/2 Tbsp Black Pepper
1/2 Tsp Spicy Mustard
1 C Olive Oil

Directions: Chop both types of lettuce very fine and mix together in large bowl. Chop all other ingredients very fine. Arrange all ingredients over the lettuce in straight lines across the greens. Arrange chives diagonally across the above lines.

For the dressing: combine all ingredients and shake vigorously. Toss with salad and serve.

My New Favorite Vegetable!

Okay, so I never get excited about vegetables, but I am soooo excited tonight! The other day, my sister told me about this wonderful vegetable that is so versatile and that I really needed to try. I was a little skeptical (although I didn't tell her that), but found this scrumptious recipe on pinterest  and just had to give it a shot. Have I peaked your interest yet? Well then, take a look at this little cutie...

                                                   

In case you haven't figured it out yet, it's SPAGHETTI SQUASH! The really cool thing is that you cut the squash in half lengthwise, scoop out the seeds, put it in the microwave for a little bit, and then shred the insides with a fork. It comes out kind of like noodles (hence the name), or shredded hash browns. I love squash anyway, so I'm not sure why I haven't tried this before. So, the even better news is that this little beauty is loaded with nutrients and is low in calories! Wow, I can't believe I just rambled on so much about a vegetable...

Have any of you tried spaghetti squash? I'd love to hear your comments, suggestions, opinions!

Here is the link to the recipe I tried, (Spaghetti Squash Au Gratin) but I did alter it a little, so I'm included my variation of it below.

Spaghetti Squash Au Gratin

Okay, so my picture looks like a hot mess, but it was really, really good!

Adapted from Dandy Dishes

Ingredients:
1 Medium Spaghetti Squash
1 Small Onion
2 Tbsp Butter
1 Clove Garlic (Minced)
1 Tsp Thyme
1 Tsp Red Pepper Flakes
1 Cup Cheddar Cheese
1/2 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream



Directions:
Cut squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Put in microwave safe bowl with 1/4inch of water and microwave for 10 minutes. While that is cooking, slice the onion very thin and begin to melt the butter in a skillet. Once the butter is melted, add garlic, red pepper flakes, thyme, & onions. Saute until onions are brown. Once the squash is done, shred the insides with a fork and blend with onions, cream, and 3/4 cup of the cheese. Put into a greased casserole dish and sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Bake at 350F for 10-15 minutes. Enjoy!

2 Weeks and Counting...

Okay, so I'm almost to the end of my second week on a gluten free diet and things are looking up! I feel much better (with the occasional headache or frustration-I think both of these are normal with 2 small kids, right?)! It feels like I can actually think a little clearer, I have more energy, and I'm just all around in a better mood. I did have some cravings this week for Zaxby's and Chicken Run (a local fast food restaurant here), but I overcame it. 

Also, just an interesting fact...my husband was in a hurry and forgot his GF breakfast & lunch this morning (I can't imagine remembering anything at 4:30 in the morning), so he ate a biscuit for breakfast and Subway for lunch. By the time he got home (around 4pm) he had to go lie down. He said he felt so nauseous, had a headache, and just felt lousy. I truly believe this is because of the diet. Now, he may not necessarily have Celiac Disease, but I think that he must have a sensitivity to gluten. It only makes sense!

I know that I was really slack about getting my menu up this week so I've included it at the end of this post. I will try to post some of the recipes and reviews this weekend. I am also working on a series of blog posts concerning my autoimmune diseases.

Week of: January 30-February 5, 2012
	Breakfast	Lunch	Dinner
Monday	Pumpkin Bread	White Chili	Frito Pie
	Strawberries	Apple
Tuesday	Strawberry Smoothie	Greek Pasta Salad	Chicken Fettucini Alfredo
		Banana	Salad
Wednesday	Bacon & Eggs	Greek Pasta Salad	Chicken Fajitas
		Apple	(glutenfreehub.com)
Thursday	Pancakes	Cheese Quesadilla	Garlic Lime Chicken
	Strawberries	w/ Corn Tortillas	(recipes.sparkpeople.com
Friday	Apple  Coffee Cake	Chicken & Rice	Cauliflower Pizzas
	(crockpot365)		(recipegirl.com)
Saturday	Bacon & Eggs	Hamburgers	Kung Pao Chicken
		& Chips	(glutenfreemommy.com)
Sunday	Muffins	Angel Chicken	Leftovers/Cereal
	(ichef.com)	(food.com)

First GF Meal!

Okay, so I decided to start simple with the whole "gluten-free" diet. Tonight for dinner was (drum roll please)...Chicken, Broccoli, & Rice Casserole! I used a recipe from Gluten Free Mommy's website, but did modify it slightly since I couldn't find some of the ingredients. It turned out rather well! The kids ate everything on their plate and my husband couldn't taste a difference. Boy, I hope all the recipes are this easy :)

So, here is the recipe in case you would like to try it for your family!

(Okay-so maybe it doesn't look as appetizing as I thought, but it  was very tasty!)

Chicken, Broccoli, & Rice Casserole
Adapted from: Gluten Free Mommy's Chicken, Broccoli, & Cheese Casserole

Ingredients:
3 Large Chicken Breasts (cooked and shredded)
1 1/2 Cup Cooked Brown Rice
1lb Fresh Broccoli
2Tbsp Butter
2 Tbsp All Purpose Flour
Dash of Salt and Pepper
1/2 Tsp Liquid Mustard (I didn't have dry mustard on hand)
1 1/2 Cup Milk
1 Packet Real Lemon
1 1/2 Cup Cheddar Cheese

*The original recipe calls for GF bread crumbs (which would have been a nice addition, but I couldn't find them at my local supermarket, so I opted for the cheese).



Directions:
Melt Butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Add flour, salt, pepper, & mustard and whisk together until bubbly.
                                        

Pour in milk and continue to whisk. Once mixture has started to thicken, mix in cheese and remove from heat.

In a large bowl, combine broccoli, rice, and cheese. Pour in soup mixture and lemon packet then stir together. Pour in casserole dish and top with cheese.

Pretty easy, huh?! Since I'm just starting my GF journey, I obviously haven't changed out my bakeware. I am a little concerned that my Pampered Chef Stoneware is porous and could possibly cross-contaminate the food. I would recommend using a glass casserole dish.

Let me know if you try this! I would love to here your opinion!