It is yummy even for a cheese lover!

I really love cheese, no I mean I really love cheese! Mac n’ cheese, quesadilla, grilled cheese . . . . Mmmmmmm!
OK so, I guess I love noodles, tortillas and bread too!
So when we found out that my daughter (at 2 months old) had food intolerance to dairy and wheat it was difficult for me to picture what our lives would be like. I just kept thinking she will grow out of it! She’s got to grow out of it! That hasn’t happened! (How did you know, you ask? Check out my post on our reasons for going gluten free/dairy free)

So here is where we are now, I’m making good old comfort food and we are loving it! Our grocery bill is a bit higher than the average American, but I have a healthy happy girl so totally worth it!

Plus I made gluten free dairy free grilled cheese today and it was good! Not “it was good for . . “ but actually good!

Gluten Free Dairy Free Grilled Cheese

1 Tbl Earth Balance Buttery Spread

2 Slices Canyon Bakehouse 7 grain bread

1 Slice Chao Vegan Cheese

Additions - we added some left over roast beef, Green chilies are yummy too! Get creative!

Butter the bread, while you warm a skillet on medium low on the burner. Place 1 slice butter side down in the preheated pan and add the cheese and what ever additions you decide on. Top with slice number 2 butter side up. When the cheese starts to melt and the bread begins to brown, flip the sandwich to brown the other side. When that side is brown it is ready to devour! 

 

One Pot Creamy Gluten Free, Dairy Free Pesto Chicken Pasta

Who said that you can't have comfort food when your diet is free of dairy and gluten. When we first started on this diet, I had trouble finding recipes that would satisfy my meat and potatos Cowboy and satisfy my love of pasta and cheese. Everything I found seemed to be either salad based or required special ingreadents that were difficult to find. Over time I realized I enjoyed finding recipes that were traditional comfort food and remixing them to work with our diet and ingredient that I can find at my local grocery store. The result are meals that friends can't tell are gluten free or dairy free!

On week nights, I count on quick and easy meals that don't leave the kitchen piled with dirty dishes! Actually it is the Hubby that appreciates one pot meals (I cook, he cleans). This meal was a hit and even with all of us scooping up seconds, there was enough for leftovers (another one of my favorite things). 

This recipe uses some of my favorite pantry essentials. If you want to know why I picked these particular things, keep reading. If you just want the recipe keep on scrolling my friend.

• Pasta- I have tried many gluten free pasta brands and found that Barilla is my favorite, most will get mushy if you cook them even one second to long. Barilla holds up great even in this one pot meal.

• Coconut Milk- I always have canned full fat unsweetened coconut milk, it is so versatile, I use it in savory and sweet recipes. Love Thai Kitchen, you can find it just about everywhere and the flavor isn't to strong making it ideal for recipes like this one.

• Pesto- It is so nice to always have a jar of pesto on hand, it usually contains some Parmesan cheese, although it is not usually enough dairy to bother me (if you are really sensitite read the label or make your own). The Kirkland brand pesto from Costco is my favorite, it has lots of garlic, yum!

• Cheese- When it comes to dairy free cheese, I stick with two brands, Field Roast Vegan Chao Slices or Trader Joe's Almond Mozzarella Style Shreads (99% dairy free). These two are my favorite, due to flavor, but if you have a favorite go ahead and use your favorite.

Ok, now back to the meat and potatoes, or rather the cheesy pasta . . .

Chop the chicken and season with garlic powder and salt and pepper. Add to olive oil to hot pan and cook the chicken.

When the chicken is cooked stir in the coconut milk and chicken broth. Then add in the pesto (I love the flavor so I used heaping tablespoons).  Add the pasta making sure it is all submerged in the liquid, if it's not all submerged add a little bit more broth. Bring the mixture to a boil and then reduce to a simmer, place a lid tightly over it and leave it alone for 8-9 minutes. No peaking!

When it the pasta is cooked, take off the burner and stir in the cheese. Eat immediately, but really who could wait! 

If you want the regular version it is here from MotherTyme.com

Our reason for a gluten free, dairy free diet

When my daughter was about 2 months old she got a rash it started on her face and soon covered her whole body! She would start crying about 10am and not stop for the rest of the day and nothing would calm her down! So of course as a first time mother, I was crying constantly too!

I brought it up to our doctor and of course the rash had calmed down a bit, in time for our visit! He suggested we just wait it out, see if it gets any worse.
I turned to my Mom for advice and she reminded me the both my sister and I had intolerances to certain foods that she ate while breastfeeding.

So now I was on a mission to figure out what food it was my daughter couldn’t tolerate! I limited my diet to only things that were considered ‘non allergens’ (a lot of plain rice or potatoes with meat and a salad with a dash of oil and vinegar). Almost immediately the crying stoped! She was a whole new baby!! After 3 weeks the rash had disappeared!! I began adding thing slowly back into my diet.

Turns out any legumes (think beans and peas) caused crying and discomfort. But what seemed to cause the crying and the bumpy red rash - dairy and wheat!

The doctor said she would probably grow out of it, my research said most kids grow out of these intolerances by 9 to 12 months.
But here we are almost 2 1/2 years later and she can eat beans and peas but not dairy or wheat We are now a gluten free/ dairy free family ready or not!