Chicken

My diet is pretty restrictive: no grain, no lactose, no sugar or sweetners (except for honey), no flour, no starchy vegetables, and no milk products except my own homemade yogurt. The thing is, often times it doesn't feel restrictive to me because usually I can get the tastes I crave by introducing a homemade version. Mixing my own spices has been an amazing experience for me, and it's really made me aware of the variety of flavors I can have on this diet. This is my third homemade spice mix, inspired by my friends C&S. They kept bragging about this commercial bought Cajun Spice mix they love, and I didn't want to be left out, so I made this chicken with my own homemade Cajun Spice mix, topped with a thick yogurt cheese that substitutes for sour cream.

Cajun Seasoning:
3 T Paprika
2 T Salt
2 T Garlic Powder
1 T Black Pepper
1 T Onion Powder
1 T Cayenne Powder
1 T Oregano
1 T Basil (Thyme could work too)

Cajun Chicken:
2/3 C Olive Oil
6 T Vinegar
2 t Italian Seasoning
2 t Garlic Powder
1/2 t Black Pepper
2 T Cajun Seasoning
1/2 t Salt
4 Chicken Breasts

Mix all ingredients except for chicken in a large bowl. Add chicken to marinade, let sit in fridge for 30 minutes to an hour. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes turning once. There should be enough left over marinade to put on veggies or pasta.

My final installment of my whole roasted turkey. I was just as excited about this meal as I was about that gravy. My lunches usually look more like breakfast, and my dinners usually look like lunch. That is to say that my meals are all pretty similar and they almost always look like breakfast. And if you know me, then you know that I really like sandwiches with white meat, so this was a treat for me. I couldn't put any good veggies on, like tomatoes, because lettuce is the only raw veggie I dare eat right now (due to stricture). But all that didn't matter because it was so nice to have a cool fresh sandwich with good meat and decent bread. I felt very happy when I ate that sandwich.

The most obvious thing to do with the chicken undesirables was to make a chicken broth out of it. I added some celery, onions, lemon juice, basil, and threw the garlic I cooked the chicken with in there. So far my best soup yet. I highly recommend this method if you are looking to make your own chicken broth.

When the chicken broth is done boiling (in about 4 quarts water for about 6-8 hours) I almost always strain everything out and put the broth in the fridge. It's good for when I'm having a yucky day and need something light and nutritious, and also good for using broth in recipes.

I made a whole roast chicken this week, instead of buying separate chicken parts (legs and breast). It turned out sooo great. I think this is the first roast bird I've ever done on my own and I was pretty nervous. I don't have a baster or roast pan, and I'm sure that hampered me some as the meat didn't really get flavored in most parts. But it turned out so well cooked and got me so many more food items than I would have gotten otherwise. Over the next few days I'll post about what I did with my roast chicken post cooking to get all sorts of different foods.

Here are the igredients that I used to flavor the chicken. Let me tell you, second only to the moistness of the meat, this was the best part about this meal.

This is the first recipe that I've really felt my way through and figured out on my own. And I'm so proud of myself because it really turned out super great. At first I tried this recipe over at SCD*Recipe, and to be honest it wasn't that great. But I know it's possible to make good nuggets at home. So I added in a some spices from a dry rub meat recipe I have, cut back on the avocado a bit, add some egg, and walla! Yummy. In the future, when I'm allowed my nut bread, I'll add some bread crumbs to the outside. And when I'm allowed more sugars I'll definitely be dipping these in homemade honey mustard sauce.