Post Date-Night Contentment

Days 6-8

I’m in a great mood today. My husband, Jer, and I had our Valentine’s Day date last night. The twins were with their mom, and my ex-husband, Willow’s Dadoo, took her for the night, so Jer and I hit Five Guys for some gluten-filled hamburgers and fries. Then we went to Barnes and Noble and spent about an hour wandering care-free through the store. It’s what we did on our first date and we would have spent far more time there if we hadn’t had a very hyper Monster Babby with us. Afterwards we came home and bathed the baby (word of warning, the floor at B&N is REALLY dirty), then watched an episode of The Tudors.  All in all, it was a fabulous night. 

Also, I’m excited to say that Willow’s diarrhea has completely cleared up on the new diet. Yes, I know. You were on pins and needles waiting to hear that, weren’t you? We also haven’t had any problems with tummy aches in days. Dinners go fairly smoothly now, instead of being a string of complaints and half-eaten meals. Best of all, we’ve found a new gluten-free recipe that is absolutely divine. I’m going to share it here. It’s from Wheat-Free Recipes & Menus by Carol Fenster, Ph.D., pg 112.

Chicken Breasts and Mushrooms

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

3/4 cup dried gluten-free bread crumbs

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

2 tablespoons brown rice flour

3 large eggs, lightly beaten

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms

1/2 cup shredded provolone or Muenster cheese (or nondairy cheese of your choice)

1/2 cup dry white wine

1/3 cup fresh lemon juice

1.                   Rinse the chicken and pat dry with paper towels. Cut into thin slices.

2.                   Combine the bread crumbs (a good way to use up your leftover gluten-free bread), thyme, and flour in a pie plate. Dip the chicken pieces into the eggs, then the crumb mixture. Season with salt and pepper.

3.                   Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease an 8-inch-square baking dish.

4.                   Heat the oil in a heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the chicken and sauté on both sides until golden brown.

5.                   Arrange the chicken in a single layer in the prepared baking dish, top with the mushrooms and sprinkle the cheese on top. Pour in the wine. Bake for 30 to 40 minute or until the cheese melts and the liquid bubbles. Before serving, drizzle the lemon juice over the casserole.

We used the Muenster cheese. I left out the pepper (I’m not a fan) and we used maybe a quarter of the lemon juice that it says to use. I’d definitely recommend this to anyone.

Another recipe we’ve used is one that we’ve always enjoyed and it only required one adjustment: buying gluten-free Worcestershire sauce. We used Lea and Perrin’s. This recipe is from The Compleat(sic) I Hate To Cook Book by Peg Bracken, pg 237.

Simpleburgers

Mix some chopped onion, salt and pepper with a pound of ground beef and fry some patties. Keep them hot somewhere and to the fat remaining in the pan, add:

1/2 cup cream

3 tablespoons gluten-free Worcestershire sauce

Stir it up, simmer a minute, then put the patties on a platter and pour the sauce on top.

Personally, we like to add sautéed mushrooms in the sauce. They’re fabulous with this recipe. We serve it with brown rice and steamed veggies. 

I found that a great way to make lunches for Willow to take to daycare is to simply use leftovers from the night before. It’s far less hassle than putting together sandwiches or packing hot dogs, and often there’s enough for her to have two days worth of lunch. Then I just have to worry about making sure she has snacks to eat. 

We’ve added a couple of things to her snack list. One of them we found at Sam’s Club. They’re called “Veggie Straws”. They’re organic, gluten-free, have 0 trans-fat and taste like potato chips. Monster Babby loves them too and has been gobbling them up any time I give him a few.  We also bought some GF Cinnamon Chex to replace Willow’s beloved Cinnamon Toast Crunch. 

The adjustments to our cooking habits are going well. We have certain pans set aside purely for cooking gluten-free meals. We’re also going to branch out a bit more with our veggies. We bought an acorn squash and are looking forward to having that this weekend. I’d cook it sooner, but Jer is going to be out for the next three nights. He’s attending the Life, The Universe and Everything conference at BYU. I’d have loved to go with him, but not with the Monster Babby in tow. I’ll attend next year though, when we can leave the little tyke with a sitter. 

I finished watching the Avatar: The Last Airbender series. It’s fantastic. Seriously, if you enjoy anime, or just really great story-telling, watch it. It’s everything cartoons should be and then some. Netflix has all three seasons available for instant play. I even picked up a Manga about the character Prince Zuko last night and am anxious to read it. 

For those of you who adore the trashy urban-fantasy romance novel subgenre, I’m really enjoying Desire Unchained by Larissa Ione. It’s the second book in the Demonica series. I read the first one when I was pregnant with Erik and had been meaning to get the rest of them ever since. In fact, now that the vacuuming and dinner are done, I think I’ll go spend some time curled up with my Nook.