September update

Oh, the things that happened this month:

• birthday party for my niece's daughter
• Labor Day swimming at my cousin's
• (always) Dr. Q
• webinar on natural treatments--mostly talking about mushrooms (I don't have time for more crazy #justsaying)
• endocrinologist appointment--she was not impressed with how quickly my primary doctor reduced my thyroid meds so she asked me to come back next month for new labs; I am currently taking 100 mcg of Levothyroxine (Synthroid)
• work dinner Olive and Ivy--pretty good, and accommodating
• went to Becketts Table and it wasn't as good as I remember, kind of weird actually; a small, tasty piece of salmon on a plate of carrots and a side of green beans after I was done eating.
• went to my niece's daughter's and son's birthday party at a park

cat in a bag - tongue out Tinker

sandwich on Bread SRSLY (a gift!) #giddy

sandwich on a Bread SRSLY roll #happiness

Sleeping Cassi--but I missed the photo contest deadline

Mmm, bacon--the low sodium has a shorter ingredient list.

Fruit!

Bacon, and bacon wrapped apricots #yum

No weird ingredients--a Costco find!

The tri-tip after cooking #nomnom

roasted asparagus

My major malfunction has been the eye doctor/glasses shopping. This seems like a short, simple process for most people. However, I:

• went to the eye doctor, got a glasses prescription, 
• went to Costco and found frames, had glasses and sunglasses made, 
• picked up new glasses and sunglasses, couldn't see but they said it was the prescription,
• went back to adjust (the ear piece was painful),
• went back to the eye doctor but they just had me see one of the technicians in the front and said it was probably the coating on the lenses (#WTF), 
• went back to Costco where they checked the prescription and sent the glasses back to be remade, but not the sunglasses, 
• picked those up and still couldn't see, 
• made and had an appointment with my friend's eye doctor at another Costco, got a new prescription, 
• got my glasses and sunglasses remade, picked up the glasses first,
• picked up the sunglasses and had the glasses in for an adjustment.

I got this style of sunglasses

I still need to take the sunglasses in for adjustment as one of the arms is too loose, but seriously, who else goes through this kind of crazy to cross ONE ITEM OFF MY LIST? I cope but I hate that this is my normal. An item on my to-do list took me two months to accomplish. I can't wait to do it again next year! #Ispeaksarcasm

Infused tequila

The infused vodka (strawberries and vanilla beans in a potato vodka) came out so good that I decided to try a sweet and spicy tequila. I used Hornitos with (unfortunately, frozen) strawberries and (from our garden!) jalepenos.

Infusing

I wouldn't drink it straight like the vodka but it would *probably* be okay in margaritas or something.

Pineapple Thai chicken

I bought this sauce at the farmer's market. I like all the ingredients except some "natural" stevia.I made it with some chicken and zucchini and rice. It wasn't bad. I would probably eat it or something like it again but I don't think I'd go out of my way to buy the sauce.

Pasta dinner

It took me a little while after I got home to get started on dinner. I had to wait for the Advil to kick in. I'm glad I didn't get my cramps during the weekend but it would be even better if I didn't have to get them at all.

Costco is selling rice pasta in a box containing 4 bags of pasta. The directions are so different from any other pasta I've cooked. It is boiled for a few minutes and then left in the hot water, burner off, for 15 minutes. I kinda messed up, forgot to stir it so it clumped, but it cooked (maybe a little too much.)

Well, it works. My dinner was yummy. And yes, that is zucchini from our garden!

Yum.

The Lagasse Girls

I received this gift from my generous coworker. I hope to find a few things I can make. I should look at my old Emeril Lagasse cookbooks and see if I can make anything from those....

Hodgson Mill cornbread mix

I made chili using a couple of pounds of the ground elk from Mick's hunt. I decided to try a cornbread mix I picked up at Albertsons. This is Hodgson Mills; I used egg replacer for the two eggs. I accidently only made enough for one replacement egg and then had to add the second one last minute. 

I made them as muffins.

It wasn't bad but a little denser than I like. I think I would use applesauce for one of the eggs next time, and maybe a double amount of applesauce so it would be less dry.

Visitors

We had "my" favorite cousin visit from Indiana. Okay, J is Mick's cousin, but she's my favorite person in his whole family. She brought her husband and son (little one) for 4 days and 5 nights.

She was very helpful in the kitchen and got the cross contamination thing right away. They are early morning people so they made themselves at home and figured out where to find things.

Happy hour!

The first day, little one got to see the F16s and F35s flying over our house. Then we went for a walk in the neighborhood. It was kind of hot and I actually got some sun on my shoulders.

We had the family over for a surf and turf lunch. The kids had a great time, running and playing. Cassi almost sat on the little one at the end of the day--he was on the couch where she wanted to curl up and sleep.

Cajun Halibut with rice, elk steak, artichoke spaghetti squash, salad

We went hiking with friends at White Tanks, the Waterfall Trail. It was a little bit hot still. I feel a little bad they didn't get to go on a bigger longer higher trail but it was a perfect starter trail for our group that hasn't been out for months.

Mick and the husband went quail hunting with my FIL and Teka. They got 3 and I had a couple in the freezer. That's enough for an appetizer!

Almost gone.

That was tiring--no naps but lots of go. They are really active as a family--playing football and Frisbee when I'm recovering from ask the rest. I can't wait for them to come again.

Pancakes via zulilly

I got a box of gluten free allergy friendly products from zulilly. The first to try: pancake mix.

Bacon!

It wasn't bad but seemed kind of bland. It's okay once I put berries and syrup but I think this pancake mix needs something for mixing in like pumpkin or Enjoy Life chocolate chips.

Weekend wrapup

My stepbrother got divorced and I was able to keep my SIL instead of him. I've always liked her so we're friends now. She had some stuff going on that we talked about last weekend when she came to our party. She asked if she could come spend the weekend which turned into just Friday night. We invited M for dinner too. 

The "grandparents" took Teka for the night so that she wouldn't have to deal with my SIL's dogs. I got this photo asking if she always sleeps with her toys--in her mouth. Um, no.

LOVES her new toy

I made proscuitto wrapped rosemary chicken with sweet potatoes and citrus green beans. It seemed that everyone enjoyed dinner. We hung out for while. M left and my SIL and I stayed up a couple more hours talking.

Dinner

In the morning, we got a late start but eventually took the dogs for a walk (it was too hot and she didn't understand how far "around the block" is in our neighborhood so I ended up carrying her little dog the last half.) She headed home and we headed out to our errands.

We got haircuts, went to Cabela's, stopped at Sprouts for some chips so we could go to Arriba's. At Arriba's, I found out that all the meat except the fish and shrimp are marinated in soy so I can't have the chicken which I KNOW I've had in the past. I had modified shrimp fajitas with corn tortillas, black beans, guacamole, pico de gallo, and salsa.

Linner

I also enjoyed a skinny margarita.

Tasty beverage

We have a free HBO/Cinemax weekend so I'm doing a lot less than I should be but probably just as much as if we didn't have the freebies. I'm guessing.

Post post birthday party

Party number 2 was also a blast! It was a totally different group, again no one from my workplace and some odd cancelations, but so fun. My friend R brought broccoli salad after checking the ingredients with me and her friend A brought me some yellow flowers. We had dinner on the patio. And drinks. A lot of drinks. A lot of laughing. My bestie B and I took a break from the group; I am not a fan of him shutting me out when he has crap going on so I had to remind him that he doesn't actually have to go it alone.

Party food

I may or may not have drank a spilled drink off the table and one of my girlfriends may or may not have been a bit frisky with Mick and I may or may not have taken a couple dozen selfies with B and some people may or may not have drank those blue margaritas Mick likes that I advised against.

We had a few overnighters so I made waffles and bacon and Mick made biscuits and sausage gravy for breakfast. It was really awesome to be able to spend so much time with some friends I have not spent much time with recently but consider to be my closest friends. I can't wait to do it again!

No tea for you

In preparation for having two small parties on consecutive weekends, I wanted to spend this weekend making the house somewhat presentable. The main issues as I see them are making sure the dog bedding and blankets are clean (for people with allergies), the bathrooms aren't disgusting, and the common areas are picked up. The kitchen is also a priority but always an ongoing project!

Mick generally takes care of the floor and the outside stuff.

I planned on using Sunday for cooking for the week, prep for next weekend, maybe some grocery shopping...

It took me all day Saturday to wash all the dog bedding and various blankets, change the sheets on my bed, and clean the bathrooms. I also had kitchen things to do such as clean out the dog food bin for a new bag of dog food, wash dishes, run the dishwasher, make meals and eat and clean up...never-ending.

Mick and his family made fried fish for lunch. I was involved although I couldn't eat it. Don't ask. I made myself a pizza as consolation. At least he figured out it was a lot more work than was feasible for a party. I think.

We also figured out that you can't freeze onions and then use them for onion rings. Frozen onions become very soggy. They can only be used as "diced" onions in cooked recipes.

I made some sun tea and was thinking about transferring the tea to another container later to make some sweet tea. But while I was making dinner, I managed to drop the whole glass jar of tea out of the fridge. My hands just stopped working. I hate when that happens but I'm usually more on guard for it and this one just totally caught me by surprise so I didn't have any back up plan. It just fell on the tile and busted.

Poor Mick was such a good honey. He told me to stop crying and to stay put while he picked up glass and brought me some shoes. He mopped it up and just had me take the rugs outside when he was done in those areas.

And YES, I cry when these things happen. I hate that I have control of things one moment and then no control over my body the next. And I was tired and hungry and ready to relax and then had this major detour because my hands don't work.

So I have no tea. And I have no jar in which to make my tea. FML.

I felt like I was pretty productive until that point. That was kind of the end.

Sunday, I woke up with a painful left shoulder again. I tried to take it easy and occasionally stretch it. Midday, it started to pop very painfully but it felt a little better after each time. By the end of the day, it was just sore. I had done very little all day, just some reading and minor picking up and watching the Lord of the Rings marathon on AMC like we don't have it on DVD.

While I was reading thekitchn, I ran across their tour of the Lodge cast iron factory which (again? I don't remember if I had heard this for certain or not) confirms that they use a soy-based seasoning. So I have to strip and reseason all my cast iron pans. Just another thing on the list, right?

When it started to get towards dark, I went out to pick weeds from the gardens. I made a big dent in the weed population a few days ago but it's a terrible battle that I'm losing and I have absolutely no backup in this fight. Unless you count that sometimes others throw out the stuff in my buckets for me. I thought from a comment Mick made on Friday that maybe there had been some help but then I saw that was not the case. Oh well. I keep working on it and they keep coming back in giant patches.

I also pulled a lot out of the raised garden to start prepping for the fall garden. It started raining so I put the kitchen rugs out for a rain bath. Mick thinks that doesn't make sense but these are old cheap rugs that I can't put through the wash so they are just filthy from the dogs. Rain is better than no washing in my opinion.

I made another halibut recipe and Mick didn't like it. To be fair, I fucked it up by spilling the salt when I was measuring it so it was kinda gross but he didn't like it anyway because it was green. He would prefer that I stick with the one I made that he liked and never try any other. Sigh. It's so awesome being married to someone who eats like he is still in elementary school. Yes, I blame his parents. Yes, they know it. Yes, they agree.

I still had a lot to do that I didn't but I just don't feel like I can motivate myself any further. Are all productive days followed by mostly non-productive ones or is that just me?

So that Sunday list up top, I did mostly none of it. That means I have to make my breakfast sausages on Monday night (so the pork doesn't go bad), the sorbet and cantaloupe puree on Tuesday, the seasonings on Wednesday, the infused tequila on Thursday, the infused vodka on Friday (I can't do that one any earlier since it has strawberries), and the rest on Saturday. I also have a round of grocery stores to hit this week since I can't get everything at any one. Wish me luck!

Weddings, the Wigwam, and the weekend

We were invited to the wedding of Mick's coworker. We thought it was at the Wigwam and then realized they just had group rates there because they were staying there. We checked rates and decided to go check it out since everyone keeps telling us how great and modern it is for a historic location.

Obligatory feet in front of pool photo

We went early to relax, unpack, and go swimming before getting ready for the wedding.

Somehow, I managed to have no photos of me and Mick at the wedding. Bummer cause he looked great.

I expected I wouldn't be able to eat at the reception but after talking with the waitress, found I could have the grilled veggies, smoked salmon, ceviche with avocado puree, and prime rib with pepper relish.

tiny dinner--first trip

My friend K totally embarrassed me out of her love for me. She knew the bride was having a gluten-free, dairy-free cake so she insisted on asking the bride if it had eggs and soy. They decided I could have a piece. I. Had. Cake. In public. It was pretty good. Okay, if you don't have to eat that, you'd probably think it was a little off, but it wasn't dry or anything...expected.

wedding cake

It wasn't a very late party but we slept in anyway. We walked around and saw the main pool that we were no where near. Then we headed to breakfast at Red's. The waitress had me a little nervous but then she took my card to the chef and confirmed my order.

potatoes, no seasoning, bacon, guacamole and salsa

Mick had the most gluten-y thing on the menu. It looked fantastic.

pancakes and sausage

Our impression of the Wigwam? Well, we must have been in the part that hasn't been remodeled yet or something. I wouldn't call it contemporary or modern. And our friends who were also staying in this section pointed out the extremely sparse artwork that just looked odd. And the parking was kind of terrible. But it was a clean, large room and we had a good time.

Sunday, we went to the movies with a friend and saw Guardians of the Galaxy. Cute. Too much unnecessary  cursing. I want a Groot in a pot. I hope that's a thing. We didn't go out for lunch or anything, just called it a day. But I got some good hugs from the friend. And hugs are good for our health so I got my medicine this weekend.

I love getting hugs from him because they are the BEST hugs. I think I've figured it out. He doesn't give me the wimpy hug that people give me when they know I'm "broken" or "fragile" because, I'm guessing, he doesn't know. And since he doesn't know, he doesn't overcompensate and squeeze me to death either. He also isn't afraid to hold on until we're done with our hug. I'm used to the "quickie" hug, so it's so different to have someone hold on for a minute. I don't know how he doesn't have a girlfriend and/or stalker.

via thebloggess on Pinterest

For dinner, Mick and I decided to try my new fryer. He actually fell asleep as soon as I started. Unfortunately, we had not stopped at Costco for more oil on our way home from the movies, so I had to go get some more. I wanted to cry--how sucky is it to have to take an hour delay because there isn't enough oil for dinner. Sigh. Well, I got back and he was up.

I made a basic batter for the cod. He thought it didn't have enough seasoning, which I can easily fix, but that the batter wasn't quite right anyway, maybe gummy or hard or something I didn't get. I, on the other hand, haven't had fried fish in several years so I was just amazed at how well my first EVER attempt at fried fish came out.

I also spiralized some sweet potatoes to make fries. They aren't thick enough so I think we'll have to stick to normal fry shaped fries. We did the first batch without batter and the last batch with batter. I like the battered ones better but, again, Mick doesn't like the batter itself.

fish fry

I also made tartar sauce from Well Fed 2 but using Earth Balance soy-free mayo which is not really Paleo but I can have it so there. I thought it was good, though not quite perfect--I'll keep working on it. It's definitely not as thick as "normal" tartar sauce. Mick wants the stuff his parents use from the jar. (I used to buy it, so I think it's actually a squeeze bottle but what does he know...)

It was a LOT of work for a mediocre meal. I think he may have given up on the fish fry idea for his friends now that he realizes how much work it will be while everyone is visiting. We'll see.

Half Moon

I had a work lunch at Half Moon. I gave the waitress my allergy card and after some discussion, she came back and confirmed they would make grilled veggies and a bacon burger with no seasoning. They actually made me a new patty since they season all their burgers at once. It was fine. It tasted like it had no seasoning. I salted and peppered everything. Maybe my taste buds are just tired of the same stuff every restaurant gives me: protein with no seasoning or sauce and veggies with no seasoning (and usually overcooked.) So effin exciting.

In a basket--convenient

My coworker sitting closest to me got a little pizza. So for dinner, when I hadn't really planned appropriately, I made a frozen pizza for Mick and I made a little pizza for me. For this one, I used Applegate turkey pepperoni, roasted red peppers, artichokes and olives over pizza sauce and homemade "ricotta" cheese on a crust from Gluten Free Creations Bakery.

Of course I ate all 4 pieces!

Taco Pasta

I didn't start to learn to cook until I was a teenager. One of the first things I learned to cook was Hamburger Helper. Obviously, Hamburger Helper doesn't work for me these days.

I recently found this Namaste brands Taco Pasta dinner and yes, I HAD to have it. Just add some tomato sauce and canned tomatoes (I used Muir Glen diced tomatoes with chipotles) and follow the directions.

It was pretty good and made enough that I had some leftovers. It's not really economical, especially noticeable if you know how cheap you can get Hamburger Helper. But for someone who has few quick dinner options, this is a good thing to keep on hand.

Namaste is a great brand for people allergic to "everything" like me and I'm glad to see it in limited amounts starting to show up at some of the "normal" stores.

Taco Pasta

Chicken salad

I found a veggie burger that I can have. There are several varieties. Since I can't eat buns, I don't eat it like a burger though. I just use them to get more veggies in my diet.

I think when you eat a veggie burger, you should always attempt to top it with some meat. Ha-ha.  Mick thought this was gross looking (he was eating something else) but he thought it was funny too. I just mixed leftover roast chicken with avocado, some Earth Balance mayo, salt and pepper. Some Kettle Crinkle Chips on the side for some crunch makes it a well-rounded lunch. Where well-rounded means I like it.

Five Guys AND a shake

I had to take my car back into Toyota to get a new radio installed. It had started acting up a few months ago but when I told them about it, they weren't able to duplicate it so they told me to "stop by when it's actually happening." I was able to do that last week when the display faded and the CD spat out when I changed radio stations. So I got a new radio under warranty.

top display is unreadable!

I told Mick that if he wasn't busy, he could pick me up for lunch so he let me know he was coming and then he showed up with a couple of guys from work who I know. We went to Five Guys. They were done eating so fast so I wrapped up my fries to take with me so I didn't hold them up. Plus, my car was ready faster than expected.

I made a smoothie that was supposed to be similar to a Frosty. I have to substitute out the banana so I don't know how much that affects it but it was similar-ish. I think it needs some work though it is good.

Frosty-ish

Pad Thai

I used a Paleo sauce recipe with some rice noodles to make some Pad Thai. We'll call that partially Paleo. It's pretty good stuff too. I made a double recipe. I think triple ingredients with a can of coconut milk would be about right.

Pasta dinner

Since this is a fairly typical dinner at my house, I'm not sure why I took a photo to post for you. The most noteworthy thing is that the pasta was pretty inexpensive--it was a "normal" grocery store sale for Barilla gluten-free penne pasta. While people can have their various opinions about the gluten-free "fad," I think it's great if it makes gluten-free products more available and brings the prices of gluten-free products down. (Not that all those products are great but still....)

So I made meat sauce with ground turkey (beef, bison, lamb, or pork work just as well) with lots of tiny chopped veggies (peppers, carrots, eggplant, zucchini), a mix of Classico marinara and Trader Joe puttanesca sauce, and fresh parsley. 

I served mine with green beans. Have you seen these steamer bags of broccoli or green beans or sweet potatoes at Costco? So brilliant. There's usually 4 packages in the bag and I can use a package for 2-3 days.

Tom Kha Gai Thai Coconut Soup

I had some leftover crockpot chicken and a hungry husband, so I tried this fairly quick recipe for Tom Kha Gai. It has a lot of ingredients and I didn't have all of them but some of the swaps listed in the comments were helpful.

I added some yellow squash from the garden since I had it. I didn't have fresh lemongrass so I used some freeze dried I picked up. I don't know that I would do that again unless I put it in something so I could remove it between cooking and eating. I thought the soup had a little too much fish sauce (as you can see from the color) but otherwise, it was really good and we would have it again (although he was careful to tell me "not ALL the time, just every once in a while.")

Salmon for his birthday

We had Mick's parents over for dinner to celebrate his birthday. I love that he no longer goes with their family standard, the Red Lobster dinner. Um, yeah, I feel a tiny bit bad that we don't get invited to the dinners anymore since I can't eat there, but I get over it when I realize that he doesn't care. By which I mean that he would rather do something for his birthday that doesn't leave me out. Whoo-hoo. Even if it means I do most of the work.

I started with some proscuitto wrapped honey rosemary figs. Figs from our garden of course. And I hope you didn't blink cause they are gone.

He's pretty excited about the fish he brought back from Alaska, so I made an old Cooking Light recipe using salmon and a sweet/spicy rub. (I can't find it online, and believe me I tried. This is why there will always be cookbooks.) This recipe always comes out yummy and today was no different.

I made a salad using a kale, collard, spinach, carrot mix and the Bragg's salad dressing I picked up at Whole Paycheck. It was great. (I've seen it at Sprouts now too.) I also made a box of Lundberg gluten-free pasta.

I had some zucchini and spaghetti squash from the garden so I added a jar of Trader Joe's artichoke antipasto. My MIL liked it so much she went back for more.

Success!