Chicken Bellagio

The amazing part is that this can all be made gluten free!

I grew up in a very small town. The only restaurants were Mom and Pop types, with the exception of one McDonald's. What town doesn't have one of these (unfortunately)? My Mom raised me by herself (after rearing 4 older boys, Amen.) and had barely enough energy after a long day's work, to go grocery shopping, let alone come home to cook a meal and clean up after it. So, we ate out. A lot.

Fast forward 15 years, during my first few years of marriage, we had moved to several different places. I remember looking in the phone book of Pensacola, Florida and gasping at the 15+ McDonald's listed in the Yellow Pages. Where I am going with this is that my initial love for chain restaurants came with my new exposure to them. Applebee's, Chili's, Outback, Olive Garden, etc.....all of these were so wonderful to my virgin, chain restaurant going self. Now, I won't go to these places without a blindfold and pretty much a gun to my head. I will sacrifice for a trip to Olive Garden very rarely only because my eldest daughter loves it so much and we tend to treat her on her birthday. I wasn't a fan of Chik Fil A and Five Guys (again, limited exposure to these) until a few years ago, but that is waning also. Enter, CHEESCAKE FACTORY (Angels singing "Hallelujah"). I know, I know....it's still a chain and it's still "junk" food. However, if I am going to have to eat while out and about, and there happens to be one in the vicinity, I am there. The spiral bound book of a menu, the variety of meals from Asian, to Mexican, to home-style cooking, never mind the bazillion types of amazing cheesecake.....and it all tastes GOOD! So here it is, my rendition of "Chicken Bellagio", a favorite of mine (one of too many) from the Cheesecake Factory. Here's to you Lyssa, my Chicken Bellagio buddy.....and to you, my brother, Scot, for the wonderful trips we've made there and the many gift cards you have furnished us for there!

(This recipe is made without wheat based flour, but you can sub any flour, including white/wheat if you so desire)

CHICKEN BELLAGIO (Cheesecake Factory inspired)

This is for 6 servings- so halve the recipe if you desire. Leftovers are yummy too!

3 boneless chicken breasts, sliced into 6 filets by cutting breasts into thin halves
(like cutting a deck of cards in half)- some pound the chicken, but I prefer to skip this step
6 slices Prosciutto


Breading:
1 1/2 cups all purpose gluten-free flour mix (or your choice of flour)
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1 Tbsp. sea salt
2 tsp. cracked pepper
1 Tbsp. oregano
3 large eggs, beaten
splash of milk

Sauce:
1 pint heavy whipping cream
6 Tbsp. prepared pesto sauce (your choice, I used Buitoni's, makes it easier and tastes great)
2/3 cup Pecorino or Reggiano Parmesan (Pecorino is from sheep's milk, Reggiano is from cow's milk)
2 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp pepper

Pasta and the rest:

Angel hair pasta- enough for 6 servings (use this brand for wheat free pasta: Ancient Harvest Quinoa )
3 Tbsp. prepared pesto for prepared pasta
1 stick of butter, for frying, and extra for the prepared pasta
3-4 Tbsp. olive oil for prepared pasta
3 cups Arugula, washed
1/2 cup grated, fresh Parmesan for topping

*In a container, mix flour, Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper and oregano. In another container, whisk eggs and splash of milk. Set two together as a station.

Here is my egg wash and flour dredging station

 Heat heavy pan on medium heat, add 2 Tbsp. butter. Coat chicken breast in flour mix, then egg mixture, then dredge in flour mixture again. Place in hot butter and fry each side until golden (adding more butter as needed). You will need to fry in batches, cleaning pan with paper towel (see my photo) in between. Then place in a baking dish. Finish in oven at 375 degrees F for 10 min. to ensure the middle is cooked thoroughly (but not too dry!) Check one piece to see if it is cooked before taking out of oven.

I used gluten free flour for this and look how yummy, golden brown it is!

I use my tongs and a paper towel to wipe up in between batches. This helps avoid any burnt bits on the subsequent batches.

Pasta and Prosciutto: While chicken finishes in the oven, boil your pasta according to directions. Lightly fry the Prosciutto slices in pan with small amounts of butter. Save aside. Make cream sauce next.

Sauce: Heat heavy cream until hot in sauce pan, add the pesto sauce and whisk. Add salt and pepper. As sauce begins to thicken, add the Parmesan cheese while whisking constantly to incorporate. Continue until mixture thickens then reduce to very low/warm until ready to serve.

Assembly: After draining pasta, add the 3 Tbsp. prepared pesto, add 3 Tbsp. butter and 3 Tbsp. (or more if you'd like) of olive oil. Toss well. Place 1/2 cup of Arugula on plate, top with a serving of prepared pasta, 1/3 cup of cream sauce, one of the chicken filets, the lightly fried Prosciutto, and freshly grated Parmesan.

The peppery flavor of the arugula truly compliments the Parmesan sauce and all the flavors of this dish, don't skip it!

I cannot tell you how impressed I was with myself. This could almost pass in a blind taste test for the real thing. Try it yourself and tell me if you agree! Excuse me, I have some leftovers calling.

Easy Miso Soup

This is all organic, delicious, healthy, made with light Miso paste

I discovered this Miso Soup paste recently, and I must say, it tastes delicious even by itself! Whenever we go to an Asian restaurant, 2 of our daughters enjoy the Miso soup tremendously. I find satisfaction in knowing that I am able to make an organic version in my own home, any time. It is so easy that my daughters also can make it! You should be able to find this at any well stocked health food store.

Miso Master Light Miso Paste Ingredients: Organic Whole Soybeans, Organic Handmade Rice Koji, Sun-Dried Sea Salt, Blue Ridge Mountain Well Water, Koji Spores.
Aged 2 - 4 months.
Unpasturized


I dare say it is considered gluten free. It is made in a facility with barley, fyi. My daughter has an intolerance to gluten, not Celiac's disease, and this is perfectly fine for her.

The only 2 necessary ingredients (besides hot water!)

It looks like a thick hummus!

Here it is:

10 oz. of hot water, 2 Tbsp. Miso soup paste, 2 Tbsp. Better Than Bouillon paste (OR if you are lucky enough to have some bone broth or home made stock, use that instead. Just heat 10 oz. broth/stock then add the Miso soup paste.) Stir well. Enjoy!

*Note, do not put the miso paste into boiling water, only resting hot water, as the probiotic benefits will decrease.

Optional: Sliced baby bok choy and/or sliced scallions- add in at any point

When being "Gluten-Free" isn't just an option

Gluten-free became a necessity at our home about 2 years ago. Our middle daughter, after years of suffering and misdiagnosis, was finally given the answer to her horrible stomach pains. The two specialized pediatricians, the family doctor, and countless in between, could not figure it out. The tests that were ordered, the procedures done, did not give them a clue. The biopsy taken from her intestines did not point to any obvious diseases, according to the doctor. Unfortunately, given that the intestines are (between the small and large intestine) almost 30 feet long, it's all together possible that a biopsy may not capture enough information in one procedure. In our case, nothing was suspect in the endoscope except for some white spots that the doctor dismissed as unknown food particles (huh?) which I have the photos of. These white spots look an awful lot like candida to my untrained eye.  The final point of feeling totally helpless was when the last specialist prescribed our daughter with a powerful anti-depressant (that was not approved for use in children-I did my research) whereby basically telling us that it was all in our daughter's head. Thanks, but no thanks.

Gluten Free Chocolate Cake with Mocha Whipped Cream Frosting.
Our most requested recipe. (I will share one of these days!)

So, I pondered and researched, and was at a total loss. Luckily for us, we were due to move a couple of months after that "diagnosis". My husband had switched gears from being a Navy pilot to a Coast Guard pilot. This new job brought us to the Tampa area. My first venture to the closest health food store, brought me into a discussion with it's owner, unbeknown to me at that time. I remember commenting to her that I had had to drive quite a distance and that I was a little discouraged at the small size of the store. Insert foot in mouth. I had asked her about other health food stores in the area, about naturopaths, etc.  I did not have high hopes of finding loads of naturopaths and like-minded thinkers when the owner of this store told me that I had just moved to the "land of the newlywed and the nearly dead". Hmmm, it is true, I guess there is a reason for the golf courses on every corner and slow driving out-of-state licensed drivers. God love them. I figured that meant that all those in between (like us) were in the minority and our holistic way of life would be hard to sustain. This same health food store owner went on to tell me that each month they hosted a "live blood cell analysis" clinic. I had never heard of this before. She explained that it was a simple procedure where a sterile needle would prick my finger tip (like a diabetic would do) and the drop of blood produced by this would be put onto a slide, under a microscope,  and examined immediately, in front of me. All shapes, dots, specks, squiggles, everything that showed up in my blood specimen would be explained to me. My first thought was, my daughter. I had nothing to lose. For $50 and a prick in the finger, what else could it hurt? I made the appointment and returned on the day scheduled, with my daughter. We got right to the point, the naturopath administering the whole thing was very matter of fact, yet witty and congenial. He put my daughter at total ease and never once asked us what her symptoms were. It was as if he would know the instant he saw her blood specimen. It was as though he read our minds. After briefly viewing my daughter's blood, he asked her, "Does your tummy hurt after you eat?" I almost did not believe it. He immediately went on to tell us that she was definitely GLUTEN INTOLERANT and needed to sustain a diet without gluten. He suggested a regime of gut healing foods, probiotics, and vitamins with minerals. At first it seems like a very harsh sentence. No more pizza, pasta, sandwiches, dinner rolls, crackers, noodle soup, etc. I am not going to sugar-coat this, it was difficult. But, so worth it. Our daughter was not diagnosed with Celiac disease. This is different than having a gluten intolerance. The original doctors had tested our daughter for Celiac, but a person with an intolerance will not usually be found so by testing for Celiac. Since entering this new world of gluten intolerance, I, of course, have researched this topic for HOURS. Unfortunately, I have found, time and time again, conflicting information. Some doctors, naturopaths, self-educated individuals, people living with either Celiac or gluten intolerance/sensitivity, will state that they are one in the same. Others will state that Celiac is an auto immune disease where as gluten intolerance is more of an annoyance. Meaning, a gluten intolerant person will exhibit symptoms such as gas, GI pain, diarrhea, etc. (Hmmm, sounds like "IBS", the scapegoat for all that cannot be figured out!) if eating gluten products, but otherwise can survive it's consequences without long term damage. From what I have researched, the Celiac person's immune system starts attacking normal tissue, such as the lining of the intestine (a.k.a. gut), in response to eating gluten. People with Celiac disease are at risk for malabsorption of food, which causes nutritional deficiencies such as iron deficiency anemia, osteopenia, and osteoporosis.  I have to argue with this next phrase though: "Persons with a wheat allergy or gluten-intolerance usually do not have severe intestinal damage, and therefore are not at risk for these nutritional deficiencies.  They also are not at increased risk of developing other autoimmune conditions." I think the jury is still out on that one.

Regardless, we know how to curb the pain and the not-so-nice results that are associated with having gluten intolerance and Celiac. They are pretty much treated the same way. The GREAT news is that I have discovered DELICIOUS ways to substitute for our favorite gluten goodies. Did you see my earlier post for the BEST EVER GLUTEN FREE BROWNIES (best ever brownies period!)? There's more too, just have a look under "Gluten Free" on my blog labels. Gluten free is not a bad way to be, for anyone. What's your favorite gluten free item? Cheers!