GF Shrimp Scampi

So this past weekend we got fresh seafood from the butcher. I ended up having left over shrimp Monday and decided to try something new rather then having boring old spaghetti (which I love) so I decided to use the leftover shrimp and do shrimp scampi!

What you need:

1lb of GF pasta

1/2-1lb shrimp up to you how much you like

For the sauce:
Butter 1/2 stick or your choice of spread
Fresh Lemon juice (about 1/2 cup)
Fresh garlic cloves (I think I cut up about 4-6)
2 Tablespoons olive oil
Sea salt
Pepper
Fresh parsley

Parmesan cheese

Boil the pasta, as that's boiling, in a sauté pan melt 1/2 of the amount of the butter and throw in minced garlic. Cook for a minute or two and throw in the shrimp. Add 1tb of oil and half of the amount of lemon juice, salt and pepper. Rinse pasta and set aside. Start to add the other 1/2 of the butter. As its melting throw in the pasta and toss around. Add in the rest of the olive oil, lemon juice and chopped parsley. Mix thoroughly! Season a little again.

Top with Parmesan and a little parsley.

So good, so simple! If it seems to dry up, add a little more oil and lemon juice. My GF noodles were tricky but it worked out well.

ENJOY!

I also did homemade GF garlic cheesy bread...super easy. Take slices of your fave GF bread butter, season with garlic, top with shredded mozzarella and top with parsley. Cook in oven at 350• for about 5-7 minutes!

Next up, roasted duck!!! :-)

What I Ate Wednesday

Well this is has been quite a test for me emotionally but I managed to come back for my second WIAW and I am very excited! Along with this I am going to post a few of the recipes from what I ate this week after!

{They include gluten free shrimp scampi and roasted duck with homemade gluten free/corn free tortillas!}

I have been really craving smoothies as of late, it started last week. I suppose I won't complain the baby could be wanting junk but I'm thankful "it" doesn't :-) So I've been doing my own smoothie making this week and not only do I like them, my 22 month old loves them! We had a strawberry, banana, raspberry that was so yummy for early breakfast!

For lunch I was craving something yummy and I happened to be close by to exactly what I was craving...Chipotle!! For a pulled pork Gluten Free burrito bowl. So very worth it!!

For a snack I had a simple veggies and hummus! Light and nutritious :-)

For dinner we made gluten free shrimp scampi in a light butter garlic sauce topped with Parmesan cheese. I also made homemade gluten free garlic cheesy bread! Yum, yum, yum!!!

Take time Tuesday

Well today is a nerve racking day but a good day. Big dr's appointments for hopefully some long awaited answers. Currently I've gotten through my 1st rheumatology appointment and now I'm waiting to get through some of the tests they're putting me through.

First it was blood...10 tubes of blood to be exact. Thought I was going to pass out! 18 X-rays, then 2 ultrasounds. I was supposed to go to neurology after this but they rescheduled it to a week from now because of all the tests they wanted to run today are taking up too much time and some of the answers might get answered through them first. Then I'm headed to my endocrinologist.

I'm so thankful after seeing literally 5 dr's that I found two who referred me to a rheumatologist. It took a lot of patience and persistence to get anyone to listen to me, but I never lost hope. I've been here before with my hashimoto's and celiac. No one would really listen, they made me feel like I was crazy, but no matter what I listened to my body and pushed on.

When I got here today as I sat in the room waiting in my gown I wondered "will this dr really hear me?" "Is this going to be the final dr who finds what's really wrong?" "Is this going to be a waste of time and more money?" "Am I crazy?!!?"

Well after meeting her, talking and her explaining what she thinks may be going on an her plan for the next few weeks I was put at ease. I'm nervous about the possibilities of what's going on, but I feel like maybe I might be getting the answers--- finally. She hopes to diagnosis me in the next 3 weeks after all re results are reviewed by her and her team. She thinks there's a great possibility that I have RA, lupus or another auto immune inflammatory arthritis disease. She seems sure she can find the answer tho. So I am positive and hopeful. The neuro wants to retest me for MS as well so I'm hoping this is the last of the testing. It's been 2 long years.

I am thankful I have insurance and a supportive few people in my life. I am thankful I am still here with apparently 9 lives, like a cat. I am thankful for having all the specialists I do have that have been pushing through trying to get to the bottom of this. And lastly I'm thankful for for being able to stay positive through this whole process.

Take time Tuesday

Well let me tell you!! I woke up this morning refreshed and well rested because after 21 LONG months my little nugget FINALLY slept in his own bed through the night!!!! And let me tell you I am THANKFUL!! Hahaha....I hope it wasn't a fluke and he truly has been excited about his new big boy full size bed like he tells us, and we are on our way to a baby free mommy and daddy bed!

I am thankful for being brave enough to meet up with a new "mom friend" for a play date yesterday. I'm always hesitant to meet new people and open up with the things I've been through, but lately I have been missing the connection of having a good friend. We had a good time, I don't think it was a friend connection for us moms, but we got along good and our boys really liked one another! So it's good to know even if its for the sake of the kids, we have a new friend for Caleb. Also during last week we tried out many new things and places for Caleb and I to make new mommy/baby friends. I'm really proud of myself because as of late I really have been to anxious to put myself out there, but when I do I see how happy Caleb can be so its worth it!

One other thing I'm really thankful for this week is I finally put my two weeks into my job. I have only had it since the end of September but ever since thanksgiving I have had more and more flare ups and medical issues that have really made it hard to work. I hate confrontation and quitting a job I really enjoyed, but with advice from my cousin I was honest with my boss and I am leaving on more than good terms. And I'm back to staying at home with Caleb and taking care of myself and the new baby on the way, with much support from my wonderful husband. I am thankful everyday for the support I have in him. No matter what.

I'm 3 months now, and only 2 weeks away from starting my 4th month! It's already going by so fast!! :-)

GF {w/DF option} Strawberry Banana Ice Cream

Holy GF banana ice cream batman!!!

So anyone who really knows me, knows that I am not an ice cream fan but when I discovered Coldstone's banana ice cream I about fell in love many years ago. I haven't actually had it in probably 3-4 years now because of the celiac and the heaviness of it never agreed with my stomach, but I have never forgotten about it!
I originally saw a recipe on the night time mom bleeps on the Disney channel for homemade banana "ice cream" that was just frozen bananas and I re-saw a few different recipes on Pinterest that really made me want try it. So tonight I did!!

I made a version of the coldstone concoction I LOVE. Banana split decision :-) made with banana ice cream, fresh strawberries, melted fudge and roasted almonds bits. You can easily do a plain banana, strawberry banana or try one like this! It was really tasty and minus the chocolate it would be totally dairy free too!

All you need is a ninja or a food processor, frozen banana chunks {I used two large bananas}, a handful of frozen strawberries, around 1/4 cup chocolate of choice {I used dark, melted} roasted almonds, and a few fresh strawberries.

Place frozen banana, frozen strawberries and melted chocolate into the ninja or processor and use the blade attachment first, after a few pluses and you see everything chopped up into small pieces {it looks dry, but it's not!} switch to the attachment that has no blade. Pulse and watch the ice cream create!!! It's fun as it turns to see it coming together :-) scoop out and top with fresh strawberries and almonds! So easy!! I'm sure too if you did like it creamier you can add a splash of milk, cream or dairy alternative. Just not too much bc you don't want to water it down.

This made about 3 servings, but I find, when making it you only want to make enough for 1-2 times eating bc it is fresh and I don't think it freezes and re-eats like it does the first time. But your choice totally!

The best part of this, it's super low cal, fruity and yummy, and you do NOT have to feel bad about splurging bc it's not real ice cream that's heavy and full of junk!

The only thing that has dairy I used was the milk in the chocolate but you can use DF chocolate too for a full DF.

ENJOY!!

WIAW

So today is my first WIAW and I have been inspired to do so by my cousin whose been actively pushing me to pursue my goals. I feel we help one another to do so all the time! It's great to have her in my life :-)

So today for my first WIAW I wanted to post my dinner from last night! Ever since I was diagnosed with a severe case of celiac disease last April I have been missing my favorite foods. I haven't had too many cravings, but now that I'm almost 10 weeks pregnant the cravings for all the things I simply cannot have, have been kicking in like crazy!

One of my favorite foods since I was in middle school is chicken lo mien. Love, love, love Chinese food. In past blogs posts I've done pork pot stickers from scratch and they were AMAZING and although I've made stir fry and lo mien before it just hasn't hit the spot like the REAL thing till last night.

I think I nailed it this time. And mostly due to the change in noodles. I had been using Thai rice noodles prior and I decided to try brown rice vermicelli by the brand Peacock instead, and WOW I impressed myself again.

For the veggies this time I used:
Water chestnuts
Red peppers
Green peppers
Onions
Carrots

{I also like use sprouts, mushrooms, and bamboo shoots but stuck to what I had on hand last night.}

For the sauce and marinade I used:
Tamari GF soy sauce
Orange juice
Water
Ginger paste
Ginger powder
Garlic powder
Minced Garlic
Salt
Pepper

And the noodles were brown rice vermicelli

So good!!

Gluten Free cooking has been an adjustment for me, but not giving up and trying again and again till I hit perfection has been key. Don't give up new Celiac's! There is hope :-)

Take time Tuesday

Lately I have not had a lot to be thankful for. Sounds harsh but I've had quite the ride the last few years with my health. Especially the last year in particular. But through it all I do have a few things I can say I'm thankful for.
Last week after dealing with most of my hair falling out I decided it would be best to cut it all off and start fresh. My dr's still aren't exactly sure why it's been falling out but hopefully in the coming weeks there will be some answers. Anyways I was terrified to cut all my hair off. I've had long hair for about 3-4 years now. So I picked out some photos and found some really cute cuts. Much to my surprise I REALLY loved the end result! I was so comfortable in my long hair routine but when it started falling out rapidly it looked like death there were short pieces and long looked bad. But I'm loving the low maintenance of my new do and the many compliments I've been getting from people who see me regularly!
Also being 9 weeks pregnant has not been easy on me, but I'm thankful for my healthy bean growing and our family expanding. So many people have had a hard time getting pregnant and I feel lucky (even being told I would be infertile.) I have not had any issues getting pregnant this time or the first. We have been truly LUCKY.
With that being said Cj and I had quite the bath time fun on Saturday. He can be a handful but gosh is he funny and full of life. I love him so very much. Absolutely thankful for him and my husband everyday.
Lastly although the snow keeps deciding to fall down we were lucky enough to have some sun and in the high 30's Sunday so the family and I took a nice few mile walk and it gives me hope spring is around the corner and my winter blues are coming to an end!! Thank goodness!!! :-)