For those of us in the Chicagoland area today, we could use a little warm comfort food today since this (below) is what it looks like out our front doors today.

Last week I had a question from Laura. She has a friend that just had a baby who has many of the same food restrictions that I have. And Laura, being a great friend, really wanted to bring her a warm meal. She said she had chicken stock and half a chicken worth of meat and wanted to make something using those ingredients. Since Tortilla Soup is one of my all time favorites this was my suggestion. I got so hungry for it just suggesting it, that I made it the next day.

Hope this Zesty Tortilla Soup will warm you right up while snowed in!

Ingredients:
1 onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 (28 oz.) can crushed tomatoes
1 (10.5 oz.) can condensed chicken broth (I used regular chicken broth)
1 1/4 cups water
1 cup whole corn kernels, cooked
1 cup white hominy
1 (4 oz.) can chopped green chile peppers (I used my whole 7 oz. can because I like it a little spicier)
1 (15 oz.) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 boneless chicken breasts, cooked and chopped into bite size pieces

*It looks like a lot of ingredients, but I love it because it used mostly can goods and spices you’ll have on hand

Directions:
1. In a stock pot heat olive oil and cook chopped chicken. Add onion and garlic once chicken begins to cook. Cook until onion is soft and chicken is cooked through.
2. Stir in oregano, chili powder, crushed tomatoes, broth, and water. Bring to a boil and simmer 5 to 10 minutes.
3. Stir in corn, hominy, chiles, beans, and cilantro. Simmer for 10 minutes.
4. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
5. Serve with chopped green onions, more fresh cilantro, or corn tortilla chips. If you can eat dairy and avacados you can serve it with shredded cheese, sour cream, and slices of avacados.

*Recipe Source: www.allrecipes.com//Recipe/chicken-tortilla-soup-i/Detail.aspx
(I slightly altered the recipe from the original and found it to taste a little better.)

I thought you may be wondering what hominy is, just like I was. (Above) Here’s what it looks like.
“Hominy is dried white or yellow corn kernels from which the hull and germ have been removed”
Source: www.food.com/library/hominy-553
This is the first time I had eaten hominy and I loved it. It has a texture somewhere between corn and potatoes.
Hope you enjoy this new ingredient in this tasty soup!

I thought you might enjoy these delicious cookies this weekend. They’re a childhood favorite of mine. A recipe from my grandma’s recipe collection book. When I went gluten free I thought I’d never enjoy them again. But hopefully you can take this replacement method I use here to still be able to make your favorite childhood sweet!

Ingredients:
2 2/3 cup flour (I use a GF flour blend for baking, like Bob Red’s Mill Brand)
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup softened butter (I do eat butter, but if you can’t you could use margarine)
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter (Look for one without a lot of added stuff)
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs worth of egg replacer (I use Ener-G brand)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract (Look for a GF one)
1 package GF, dairy free, chocolate chips (the original recipe calls for Hershey Kisses. I couldn’t find any that are GF, dairy free, so I use these chocolate chips instead)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Sift flour with baking soda and salt and set aside.
2. In a large bowl beat peanut butter and butter on medium speed with mixer until well blended.
3. Add the white and brown sugar and mix until light and fluffy.
4. Add egg replacer and vanilla and beat until smooth.
5. Stir in flour mixture.
6. Using a level tablespoon, shape the mixture into 5 dozen balls with your hands. Note: I only baked half the batch of dough and placed the other half of the dough in storage bags in the freezer to make later.
7. Roll each dough ball in sugar.
8. Place each dough ball 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 8 minutes.
9. Remove from oven. Place chocolates in center of each cookie. Place back in oven for 2 more minutes. Remove, cool, and enjoy!

Hope this replacement method will help you to still enjoy your favorite cookies even on a restricted diet!

I woke up this morning and its snowing again. Don’t get me wrong, if its going to be freezing cold at least the snow is pretty. But I’m ready for Spring and unfortunately its still January. So, I thought since its still cold and snowy out you might enjoy a hearty warm meal even on a restricted diet.

This Savory Cottage Pie is warm and filling to give you lots of energy during these frigid months. Its easy to make, follows my restricted diet, and is a great all-in-one meal for a larger group as well. So enjoy!

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large yellow onion, diced medium
2 carrots, cut into 3/4-inch pieces
Coarse salt and ground pepper
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 pound ground beef, lamb, or turkey
2 teaspoons thyme
1 cup gluten free beer, you can also use beef stock
2 tablespoons gluten free all-purpose flour (I use Bob’s Red Mill brand)
3/4 cup frozen peas
1 large russet potato (3/4 pound), very thinly sliced (I use a mandalin to slice it thin)

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In large skillet heat 1 tablespoon butter over medium-high.
2. Add onions and carrots and cook, stirring often, until onion is soft, 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Add meat and cook, breaking up with wooden spoon, until almost cooked through, 3 minutes. Drain fat.
4. Add tomato paste, thyme, and beer or stock and bring to a boil. Cook, stirring frequently, until slightly reduced, 2 minutes.
5. Sprinkle flour over mixture and stir to combine. Add 1 cup water and cook until mixture thickens, about 2 minutes.
6. Stir in peas and season with salt and pepper.
7. Transfer mixture to a 2 quart baking dish.
8. Top with potatoes, overlapping slices. Season potatoes with salt and pepper and drizzle 2 tablespoons melted butter on top.
9. Bake until potatoes are browned around edges and tender, 40 to 45 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes and serve.

*Recipe says it serves 6. I found it serves more like 4. I made 1 1/2 times the recipe (shown) to feed 5 and have left overs.
*Recipe source: Martha Stewart’s Everyday Food: November 2010 Issue.

I love quick, easy to make meals that use very few dishes to prepare. If you need a super quick, easy to make meal that’s hearty, warm, and uses left-overs you already have in your fridge, this soup is for you. This soup not only follows my restricted diet, but can also be made so its a vegetarian and vegan meal if you like.

The secret: These great boxed soups from Trader Joe’s or the health food section of your local grocery store. They generally cost anywhere from $3 to $5 and are so worth it.

Almost all of these boxed soups follow my restricted diet. Even the creamy soups a lot of times use coconut milk or soy milk as the base, so its still dairy-free. Its also nice that I recognize the ingredients listed in them; things like carrots, beans, lentils, spices, squash, etc. There are a lot of varieties available, everything from Creamy Corn and Roasted Red Pepper to Curried Red Lentil to Butternut Squash.

You can heat these soups right out of the box if you’re into thin, broth soups. But, if you’re like me and need something a little heartier here’s my solution.

What I put in these soups:
I use left-over vegetables, beans, lentils, rice noodles, and meat to add to these soups.

How I make this soup in one pot:
I cut up the left over meat or veggies that I want to add.
In a saucepan over medium heat I heat a little olive oil and add my veggies that need to be cooked a little.
Then I add the meat, beans, lentils, rice noodles (anything that needs to just be heated).
I then pour the boxed soup in, over the other ingredients. Stir and just heat it until its warm and bubbly.
I rarely add any other seasonings since the boxed soups have a lot of flavor, but you could add additional salt, pepper, cumin, or serve it with fresh herbs on top like cilantro.

Here are some ideas for yummy stuff to add to your boxed soups:

Veggies- I like to incorporate veggies that compliment the boxed soup ingredients. So if the boxed soup says that it has carrots as an ingredient, I like to add carrots, etc.
(carrots, onions, celery, butternut squash, broccoli, sweet potatoes, etc.)

Proteins and Starches- I use pretty much whatever is left over in my fridge for the proteins and starches. If I have a little left-over chicken or beans, that’s what I use.
(chicken, beef, lentils, black-eyed peas, split peas, kidney beans, cannellini beans, potatoes, corn, rice pasta, etc.)

Hope this is another yummy addition that can become a go-to quick, healthy meal for you! Enjoy!

I found love pasta dishes that are full or flavor. I fell in love with this one because its delicious despite the fact it doesn’t have cheese in it! Its a little spicy, a little saucy, and full of nutrient packed ingredients that’ll warm you from the inside out.
As you can see this is another kale dish; I’m really loving kale right now and hope you will too!

Ingredients:
1 can (15 oz.) cannellini beans
2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 large red onion, sliced thin
4 fully cooked spicy chicken andouille sausages cut into thin slices (I like Trader Joe’s Smoked Andouille Chicken Sausage)
1 pound greens (I use kale, but you can also use collard greens or mustard greens) cut into 1″ strips
1 can tomato based vegetable juice (I use V8 Vegetable Juice)
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 pound penne pasta (I use GF pasta)

Directions:
1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Toss with a little olive oil and set aside.
2. Heat olive oil in large pot on medium heat and cook onions until translucent. Add chicken sausage and cook until fragrant about 5 minutes.

3. Add greens a little at a time and coat until wilted. Then add vegetable juice, cayenne, and sugar. Cover and simmer about 10 minutes until greens are tender.

4. Add beans and stir to combine. Cook uncovered until most liquid is absorbed about 3 minutes. Swirl in vinegar and stir to combine. Remove from heat.
5. Serve greens, beans, and sausage mixture over pasta. Enjoy!

* Recipe Source: A health magazine that I can’t remember the name of, sorry. Got it a couple years ago.