Turkey meatloaf Dinner

One of our favorite dinners here in my house is Turkey meatloaf and it is so good and so easy to make. I have to admit that it was not something I thought we would like at all being the meat lovers that we are, but after getting sick with Graves and Hashi's, red meat became something that made me feel really bad at times and it just wasn't worth feeling sick and bloated after eating red meat. I had to experiment with it a few times and some was good and some was, well...just yuck. I finally found a recipe that works for me and my hubby, which was really the true test, being that he is a lover of all things meat!


Turkey Meatloaf:

2 lbs of good, quality, organic, ground Turkey
1 chopped onion (diced)
2 stalks chopped celery (diced)
1 tsp. of chopped garlic
1/2 package of gluten free brown gravy mix
garlic sat and pepper to taste
2 tblsp. of water (keeps it moist)

Mix well and form in a loaf pan and bake at 375 degrees until done (about 40 minutes)

**you can add tomato sauce or even ketchup(if you like that) to the top, but if tomatoes are a no no on your diet, then just skip that part and make the other half of the gravy mix and pour on top.

I then baked sweet potatoes and make mixed greens to go with it and you would have thought my hubby was eating a steak dinner by the oohs and ahhhs I was getting from him!

I hope you enjoy this as much as we have and thanks for coming!! See you next time!

My favorite smoothies

     Who loves a good smoothie? I was never a smoothie kinda girl, but the last few years of trying to feel better, get healthier, and get more of the good stuff into my system, has had me looking for new and yummy ways to do just that! I am a creature of habit and I just cannot eat or drink anything that taste nasty, even if it IS good for me...nope..can't do it! It took  me awhile to figure out the best combinations and recipes that I could and did look forward to drinking on a regular basis.

     The first thing I did was to buy the equipment that I needed and then researched all the various websites online that could possibly tell me what to do and what kinds of foods to use and for what purpose they served. Yeah...that took some doing and a lot of experimenting, but I finally figured out what I liked and I ran with that (not really, I never run unless I'm scared)! There are a million different ways and combinations to make smoothies that you like and that are good for you too!

     Here are just a few that are my go to smoothies:

This one is my favorite!

Chop a bunch of strawberries
a bunch of fresh pineapple
a handful of spinach
a plash of naked juice or your favorite juice
a sprinkle of chia seeds
a sprinkle of bee pollen
and then fill to the line with coconut water or you can use just plain water

mix well and enjoy!

     Another favorite that I like to do for breakfast is:

A cup of oatmeal
a chopped apple
a banana
a tsp. of cinnamon
fill to live with your favorite kind of milk, whether it be regular milk, almond or coconut milk
blend and enjoy!


For a veggie smoothie:

I like to use celery, tomatoes, spinach, onion, parsley, bell pepper and even a jalapeno if you like that and fill to line with water, add a little salt and pepper and blend well!

     These are just a few variations and some, sadly, have had to be changed because of my illness, but look it up, play with it, and see what happens. It's a great way to get extra fruits and veggies into your body that you would otherwise just not eat or consume because of you busy schedule or lack of time in cooking or whatever it is that keeps you from eating them. I hope you enjoy these!

Last weeks menu and some of my food choices

     Changing my diet to heal my body has been a bit of a challenge, it's only been a week and I'm sure I'll have plenty more challenges as time goes by with keeping it all healthy and interesting so that we aren't eating the same thing all the time. No one wants to eat the same thing all the time and keeping it healthy and yummy too are hard at best, but so far, I've managed to not only impress my hubby, but myself too! I say that because I am a food lover and food is just one of those magical things that makes us so happy and content and it also brings us all together. Well...we can still have all that, we just have to change our way of thinking, you know attitude is everything...right?? We also have to change what we are putting into our bodies so that our bodies are happier and when that happens...well...that's a beautiful thing...we are happier and healthier and we have more energy and are able to do whatever it is that we need to do.

     Last weeks dinner menu went like this:

Lime Cilantro Chicken with brown rice and Brussels sprouts.

Turkey meatloaf with sweet potatoes and green peas.

Cabbage Rolls with roasted carrots.

Shrimp and asparagus stir fry with lentils and Brown rice

Lemon Chicken Picatta with capers and brown rice and green peas.

Fried Cod with Broccoli slaw..

There are lots of veggies (I love green peas) and brown rice is a good filler that goes with everything. I'm moving on to Tinkyada brown rice pasta next week to see how I like it, but mostly veggies, turkey, fish, and chicken are my main things to eat, mostly because that is what I like..

I am not doing red meat or sugar because my Cholesterol is a little on the high side and I want to get it lowered naturally. I love salads, but cannot have tomatoes with Hashimoto's right now and that makes me sad...

     Here is what I can have on the AIP Diet:

This list is courtesy of PaleoLeap.com

Some of these I will not eat and some I will...I have I am trying to tailor this to fit all of my needs which are Gluten free, no sugar, dairy, corn, white potatoes, or any nightshades because of my Hashimotos..it's been a challenge to incorporate all of these things, but I am still working at it..If you have Hashimoto's, please lookup what nightshades are and how to eliminate them from your diet...some people have taken them out and reintroduced them to their diets again after awhile and have had no problems...I will do another post on nightshades.

Meat

Beef, pork, lamb, veal, rabbit, goat, sheep, horse, bison, wild boar, …

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Game meat

Deer, pheasant, bear, moose, woodcock, elk, duck, rabbit, reindeer, wild turkey …

Poultry

Chicken, turkey, duck, quail, goose, …

Fish

Salmon, tuna, trout, bass, halibut, sole, haddock, turbot, walleye, tilapia, cod, flatfish, grouper, mackerel, anchovy, herring, …

Shellfish

Crab, lobster, shrimps, scallops, clams, oysters, mussels, …

Fats

Avocados, avocado oil, olive oil, coconut oil, butter, clarified butter (ghee), lard, tallow, duck fat, veal fat, lamb fat, fatty fishes (sardines, mackerel, salmon), nut butters, nut oils (walnut, macadamia), coconut flesh, coconut milk, …

Eggs

Chicken eggs, duck eggs, goose eggs, quail eggs, …

Vegetables

Celery, tomatoes, bell peppers, onions, leeks, kohlrabi, green onions, eggplants, cauliflower, broccoli, asparagus, cucumber, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, artichokes, okra, avocados, …

Green leafy vegetables

Lettuce, spinach, collard greens, kale, beet top, mustard greens, dandelion, swiss chard, watercress, turnip greens, seaweeds, endive, arugula (rocket), bok choy, rapini, chicory, radicchio…

Root vegetables

Carrots, beets, turnips, parsnips, rutabaga, sweet potatoes, radish, jerusalem artichokes, yams, cassava, …

Winter squash

Butternut squash, spaghetti squash, acorn squash, pumpkin, buttercup squash, …

Summer squash

Zucchini, yellow summer squash, yellow crookneck squash, …

Fruits

Bananas, apples, oranges, berries (strawberry, cranberry, cranberry, blueberry, blackberry), grapefruit, pears, peaches, nectarines, plums, pomegranates, pineapple, papaya, grapes, cantaloupe, cherries, apricot, water mellon, honeydew mellon, kiwi, lemon, lime, lychee, mango, tangerine, coconut, figs, dates, passion fruit, persimmon, …

Nuts and seeds

Pistachios, Brazil nuts, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds (pepitas), pecans, walnuts, pine nuts, macadamia nuts, chestnuts, cashews, almonds, hazelnuts

Mushrooms

Button mushroom, portabello, oyster mushroom, shiitake, chanterelle, crimini, porcini, morel…

Fresh and dried herbs

Parsley, thyme, lavender, mint, basil, rosemary, chives, tarragon, oregano, sage, dill, bay leaves, coriander, …

Spices and others

Ginger, garlic, onions, black pepper, hot peppers, star anise, fennel seeds, mustard seeds, cayenne pepper, cumin, turmeric, cinnamon, nutmeg, paprika, vanilla, cloves, chilies, …

     With all of this "said" I hope I haven't confused you too much, I am still learning and will happily take ay and all suggestions. I will also post  my recipes in my next blog!

Thanks for being here with me on my journey and here's to our health!

Healing my body with food

     I've been writing and rewriting this blog post for days and finally just smacked myself in the head and started over! I was making it too hard and too confusing, which is how I feel, trying to get used to eating a certain way to heal my body. I've since decided that I will just do it in pieces and just explain it simply so that everyone understand what it is that I am doing...and myself too, for that matter.

     So, the fist thing that I will tell you is that I have Graves and Hashimoto's...just that in itself is enough to make anyone cringe. Having them both makes it very hard to treat and even when my levels are in range, I still have very high antibody counts that add misery to my misery! After feeling like death with "normal" lab ranges, I started researching it all over again and found that even with those ranges in the "normal"...your high antibody counts can also make you miserable and sick. I then looked into what to do to get these antibodies down to normal and the most effective way, to me, was to change my diet and see what happens and that is my journey right now.

     The first thing I did was to take Gluten out of my diet and that is hard at first but to my surprise, I have found many, many, ways to live without it. Everyone knows that I love to cook and eat, I love making new recipes and I love feeding everyone that I can and I just knew that this would be horrible and that I would be miserable and so hungry, but alas...I am none of those and I actually feel so much better this week, just that fast!

     There are a million and one websites and pages to look at online and everybody has an opinion as to how you should go gluten free..my advice is to look at everything about it, talk to people about it, and then make your decision based on what works for you...not everyone has time to make up specialty recipes or the money to buy everything gluten free and if you are like me, you have brain fog that makes you seem crazy at times and an inability to stay focused, which in turn, makes you anxious and confused! Crazy huh? I know, so I'm taking my time to slowly explain exactly what I am doing to heal my body as best as I can.

    The first thing I did was to see exactly what has gluten in it and I was amazed to find gluten in a whole host of things that I never thought it would be in, such as, my vitamins and supplements, gravy mixes, condiments, hair products and make up too..not that I wear a lot of make-up because that takes energy and want to and at this point in time, I just don't have any of that. After figuring out what to avoid and how to read every label there is, I took notes as to what to replace everything with. I know that wheat and bread products are out unless they are certified Gluten free. There are even some meats and dairy products that have gluten in them... really?? This is why it is so important to buy fresh, organic, meat and dairy products (if you eat them at all). I have learned that when you really start to look for gluten free foods, there is a plethora of them out there and there are many ways to improvise your cooking that makes it a little easier to deal with and to cook.

     Here are just a few adjustments that I've made so far:

     1. If you are still wanting to fry things, there is always gluten free flour that you can use, my choice this week has been King Arthur gluten free flour. It really was not that different than regular flour, not that I fry a lot of foods or use a lot of flour, but it worked out great on a really yummy recipe I made this week. Lemon Chicken Picatta..

Lemon Chicken Piccata

 

Print

Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

25 mins

Total time

40 mins

 

Author: Jo Cooks

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 2 skinless and boneless chicken breasts, cut in half lengthwise
• salt and pepper to taste
• all purpose flour, for dredging
• 4 tbsp butter, unsalted
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• ⅓ cup fresh lemon juice
• ½ cup chicken stock or dry white wine, I used wine
• ¼ cup brined capers
• ⅓ cup fresh parsley, chopped

Make Any Dish Better with Swanson® Broth

 

Instructions

1. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge chicken in flour and shake off excess.
2. In a large skillet melt 2 tbsp of butter with the olive oil, over medium to high heat.
3. Add chicken pieces to the skillet and cook for about 3 to 4 min per side until browned. When chicken is cooked, remove chicken from skillet.
4. Remove skillet from heat. Add lemon juice, chicken stock or wine, capers and scrape up the brown bits from the pan for extra flavor. Return skillet to heat and bring to a boil. Taste the sauce and season with additional salt and pepper if needed. Add chicken back to skillet and simmer for about 5 minutes. Remove chicken to a platter and add remaining butter and whisk for about a minute. Sauce will thicken a bit.
5. You can return chicken to skillet and garnish with parsley. Alternatively you can pour the sauce over the chicken and garnish with parsley.

Nutrition Information

Serving size: 148g Calories: 265 Fat: 19.5g Saturated fat: 8.5g Unsaturated fat: 0.0g Trans fat: 0.0g Carbohydrates: 7.0g Sugar: 0.6g Sodium: 248mg Protein: 18.5g Cholesterol: 73mg

3.2.2925

**This recipe is from Jo Cooks, I found it on Foodgawker and it was just sooooo good, I had to try it. I changed the regular four for gluten free flour and used chicken stock in place of the wine!


     2. Another handy tip I learned was that you can use brown rice to your hearts content and there are several brands that are Organic and gluten free. I was already using brown rice quite a bit in my daily recipes, but now it is my life line because I am not eating as much pasta as usual. There are some good gluten free pastas out there and I'll get to that next. Brown rice can be used in so many ways, I just never even knew, until I had to..lol! Here are some ways that I've been using brown rice.

     *I use it as a filler in my meatloaf, stuffed peppers, or cabbage  rolls. I  add veggies and chicken stock to it to use as a side dish and I use it when making any kind of a stir fry.
 
*I will do a separate blog post with all of these recipes in it.

     3. I have also learned that it's ok to eat 2 or 3 vegetables with your dinner...lol! I've always been one of those cooks who made everything balance at dinner time, you know, a meat, a bread, a veggie, maybe two veggies and if we were lucky, a dessert too! If It didn't look balanced, then I would think it was wrong, maybe that's the OCD coming out in me? I have no idea, but now, veggies are my friends and the more the merrier! 

   4. I have learned that you can use herbs and spices to add to everything and it just makes it all better...I always thought that I used plenty of different spices, but this week, I have used so many more and have played around with them, thus making my meals all that much more better!

     5. The most exciting thing that I learned this week, was that I don't have to give up pasta completely! I love, love, love, my pasta and I was so sad to learn that it was, of course, full of gluten or even that the store brands of Gluten Free pastas have corn flour in them and for me, that just won't work and then a friend pointed me in the direction of Tinkyada Pastas...low and behold, they are gluten free, corn free, and soy free! Yippee!! I can order them online and they are affordable! I won't eat them a lot because I can't have tomatoes or tomato products yet, but...I can add them to soups or stir fry's and that is good enough!

     I know that you've seen me state that there are foods that I can't have and some of those are because of the Hashi's and some are because they just make me sick when I use them. I will post the next blog soon and explain why I can't have them and what they are. I hope this blog hasn't confused you even more, I am trying to get you the information in away that doesn't make you scream and run for the hills...think about this and look up all the gluten you want to know about gluten and what you can do for yourself. The blogs that I write are just a go to for hopefully, good information and inspiration. Research everything you can about your illness and research everything you can about what it is going to take to feel better and what will work for you. We must be our own advocates when it comes to our health, no one will care more about ourselves than...well....ourselves!  I hope you feel well today and you have a great day too!