Grilled Chicken Salad with Toasted Coriander Lime Dressing

I wanted to do something bigger for the start of Celiac Awareness Month, but allergies combined with several other things have kept me down for the week. I managed to get in for an allergy treatment on Tuesday and I felt a little better after being treated for plant phenols (part of the chemical makeup of plants). I was reacting not only to nature while outside, but pretty much everything I was eating. My doctor said it was no wonder I felt like my body was trying to kill me. Seriously. I went in and told him I felt like my body was trying to kill me before giving him my laundry list of symptoms. I will be glad when we are done peeling this ginormous onion.

I should be sleeping right now, but I had to at least put this together quickly.

Yes, it is that time of year that everyone is posting about Celiac Awareness Month. This is the opportunity we take to help educate those new to a medically necessary gluten-free diet or those wanting to learn more because someone they love is on the diet.

This year, I want to challenge those of you who are veterans of the diet to make everyday an awareness day. I’ve stated before that it is our responsibility to educate others daily in a kind manner. This means not using vilification towards others when our diets are under fire from someone. This is a difficult thing to do because our natural reaction is defensive. Maybe if more of us can respond in a more rational manner to people there will be less jokes about our diet and more understanding of how it truly affects on a daily basis. Most people don’t know we have to learn what the derivatives of gluten are in food products and that we  have to be diligent about reading labels if we buy something packaged and when we use personal care products. We are our own best advocates and if we want to advocate for the entire community, we need to have cool heads about us to teach/correct the general public. Reactionary behavior/words only serves to inflame everyone and make us look like the irrational militants many people think we are.

In other words, BE NICE.

Grilled Chicken Salad with Toasted Coriander Lime Dressing – serves 2

2 chicken breasts

salt

pepper

1 romaine heart, chopped

3 handfuls of fresh spinach, chopped

5 radishes, sliced

4 mini-sweet peppers, sliced

juice of 1 lime

1/4 cup olive oil

2 teaspoons coriander seed

Season both sides of chicken breast with salt and pepper and set aside to come to room temperature. Grill chicken breasts until they reach an internal temperature of 185º. Let rest on a cutting board. Place coriander seed in a dry pan and toast over medium heat until fragrant. Grind the seeds in a spice grinder or use a mortar and pestle. Set aside. In a medium bowl, mix together romaine, spinach, radishes, and sweet peppers. In a small mixing bowl, add lime juice, olive oil, coriander seed, and a pinch of salt. Whisk together well. Slice chicken breasts. Plate the salad with chicken on top and pour dressing over the salad, including the chicken.

*If you want more depth to your salad, add grilled onions and fresh chopped cilantro. If you or someone you love has a lime allergy use apple cider vinegar.

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Strawberry Kiwi Smoothie/Milkshake

Even though I can have dairy again I still don’t like milk.

Unless I’m baking with it or making hot chocolate with it.

Call me crazy, but I don’t ever remember being forced to drink milk as a child except for one time when I was being babysat with a friend by her grandparents. They were also forcing me to eat a sandwich heavy dressed with mayo. That was not a good day.

With my continued dislike of milk in mind, I am still making smoothies and milkshakes with dairy-free milk.

I started making this Strawberry Kiwi smoothie last summer when I had a lot of strawberries and kiwis in my grocery delivery. It was easy to prep both for freezing to use later. Two weeks ago, I used up the last of my frozen kiwis and strawberries then wondered, why haven’t I shared this with you?

Oh, right. I’ve been writing.

Well now you get this just in time for the strawberries and kiwis showing up in the market. You can use frozen strawberries from the frozen food section, but if you have the time to do it, I recommend buying fresh and freezing them yourself. When they are in season the prices go down, which makes it cheaper than buying a package of frozen berries. I normally buy my berries when they are on sale, making them even cheaper.

If this is your first experience with one of my smoothie recipes, I do not make them for meal replacements. I do not use protein powders or other things you might find in a meal replacement smoothie/shake. I try to keep them limited to just what you will find in your pantry and refrigerator because I see them as a quick snack rather than a meal. I prefer to chew my food for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

If you don’t like hemp seeds or are allergic, just use your favorite dairy-free milk. Or regular milk if you swing that way. The maca root powder can be omitted, but I find that it gives the hemp milk a milky-er feel.

Strawberry Kiwi Smoothie/Milkshake – serves 1

1 cup filtered water

1 tablespoon hemp hearts (shelled hemp seeds)

2 teaspoons maca root powder

4-5 frozen strawberries

5-6 slices frozen kiwi

1 tablespoon nut butter of choice (optional, or use a tiny amount of Sunbutter or tahini if allergic to peanuts or nuts)

1 tablespoon raw local honey (or other sweetener of choice)

Add water, hemp hearts, and maca root powder and blend until milky. Add remaining ingredients and blend until smooth.

Chicken & Gluten-Free Dumplings

I never gave too much thought to chicken and dumplings until I moved to Kentucky. My mother rarely made it when I was growing up and it is not something you find in Hawai`i.

My MIL seemed to make it often though. She did the rolled dumplings. I was used to drop dumplings. I made them a few times, but drop dumplings are easier. Less to clean up!

I have worked on this recipe for the last two years trying different all-purpose gluten-free flour mixes and different measurements for the ingredients. The flour mix you use does matter. I am giving you two options: an all-purpose mix and measure your own flours. The all-purpose mix will give you a lighter, fluffier dumpling, especially if you use bacon fat. The measure your own flours will be a bit denser.

You can make this over the stove or in a slow cooker.

Chicken (or turkey) & Gluten-Free Dumplings – serves 4-6

1 pound cooked chicken or turkey, chopped

1 onion, diced

2 or 3 large carrots, quartered & sliced, OR 1 bunch small carrots, sliced

3 celery stalks, halved lengthwise & sliced

9 – 12 cups chicken broth

1 teaspoon dried thyme OR 1 tablespoon fresh thyme

1 bay leaf

Salt to taste

1 cup frozen peas (or fresh)

2 cups Hodgson Mills All-Purpose Gluten-Free flour OR 2/3 cup brown rice flour, 2/3 cup sorghum flour, and 2/3 cup tapioca flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

2/3 – 3/4 cup dairy-free milk or cream

2 tablespoons bacon fat (melted), olive oil, or soy-free Earth Balance (melted)

Add chicken, onion, carrots, celery, chicken broth, thyme, bay leaf, and salt to a large pot or slow cooker. Simmer for an hour over the stove or on low in a slow cooker for 4 – 5 hours. The larger your carrot pieces, the longer you want it in the slow cooker.  Before the end of the cooking time, mix the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium mixing bowl. Add in the fat/oil and dairy-free milk. Start with 2/3 cup of the dairy-free milk and slowly mix in more if needed. You want the dough to be thick. If it is thin, you will end up with pot pie instead. At the end of the cooking time, remove the bay leaf and add the peas. Drop the dough in by tablespoon. Cover and cook for 15 minutes more on the stove or 30 minutes more in the slow cooker. If you want to thicken your soup, add a little milk to the remaining dough mix in the mixing bowl to create a slurry and add it to the pot.