Zesty Citrus Chicken

 

This past week I was feeling so unmotivated, lazy, and depressed that even cooking felt like a chore.  I needed something to wake me up and inspire me.  Lime zest was the answer.  Monday night I was planning on just sauteing some chicken and steaming some Chinese broccoli, when I suddenly realized I had a bowl of limes and oranges sitting on my kitchen table, waiting to be used.  So I zested them, and some fresh ginger root!  The zest brought my dinner to life and made me fall in love with cooking and living again.  I hope this sweet and tangy dish brings some zest to your life!

Zesty Citrus Chicken

Ingredients
2 teaspoons of fresh grated ginger
1 teaspoon of lime zest
1 teaspoon of orange zest
The juice of the lime and orange you zested
1-2 cloves of garlic finely chopped
1-2 green scallions finely chopped
1 cup of wheat free tamari/soy sauce
1 tablespoon of sesame oil (plus more for frying)
1 tablespoon of honey or agave
1 tablespoon of sesame seeds
1 can of sliced water chestnuts
1-2 chicken breasts, chopped into cubes
1 bunch of Chinese broccoli (or your favorite greens)

Directions
1.  Mix together all ingredients (except the chicken, water chestnuts and broccoli) in a bowl.
2.  Stir the chicken into the bowl and let marinate for at least a half an hour.
3.  While the chicken is marinating start cooking some jasmine rice.
4.  Also, wash and trim the broccoli and steam in your bamboo steamer.
5.  When ready throw the chicken, marinade sauce and the water chestnuts into a pan with oil and cook on medium/high heat for a few minutes until chicken is cooked through. 
6.  Serve chicken with steamed broccoli and rice!

Wheat/Sugar/Dairy Free Revenge!

Even though many people today know what soy milk is or what "gluten-free" means, most people don't understand how lonesome and challenging it can be to live wheat/sugar/dairy free.  Like when your friend is having a pizza party, you can't help feeling excluded and left out.  In those situations it seems easier to just skip the party all together because it is better than having to explain your diet to other people, or worrying there won't be anything you can eat, or coming off as "annoying" for making special food requests.  The last thing you want to do is draw more attention to yourself for having this "weird" diet.

I remember being a kid who was allergic to chocolate and dairy, and how much I hated being different from the other kids.  I would lie about my allergies at birthday parties and binge on pieces of Carvel ice cream cake.  I stole money from my mother's purse, and as soon as I got to school I would throw out the tuna fish sandwich she packed me and buy a grilled cheese, chocolate milk, and an ice cream sandwich from the cafeteria.  All I wanted was to be like everyone else.  Now, as a grown up who is back on a special diet, I sometimes feel this same anger and shame around being different.  I can't enjoy a glass of wine with my friends or travel to any country I desire.  It feels like there is a lot I miss out on and can't be a part of.  

So if you are ever feeling alienated or ostracized for being wheat/sugar/dairy free, consider trying one of, or all of, the following suggestions:

1.    Drop all of your friends who do eat wheat, sugar, or dairy. You need them like you need indigestion.

2.    Start a club for wheat/sugar/dairy free people only.  Make up a secret password like xanthan gum.

3.    Create your own w/s/d free slang, like "What the wheat?" Or to insult someone you call them a "dairy drinker!"

4.    Form a band with only w/s/d free folks.  Name your band something like Quinoa Theory.  

5.   In the lunchroom at work, sit next to a w/s/d eater, stare at their ham and cheese sandwich, point your finger, and say in a repulsed manner, "Ewww, what is that?"

6.   Host an exclusive dinner party that only people pure from w/s/d are invited to.  Make sure to have "wheat detectors" at the door and be ready to take urine samples if necessary.  Then the next day, post photos of your delicious meal and smiling w/s/d free friends on Facebook so everyone who wasn't invited feels bad. 

7.    And to get revenge on the really heartless people who told you, "God you're just no fun for brunch," or "I have to break up with you because you can't drink a beer with me," send them hate mail and stuff the envelopes with old frosting, or moldy brie cheese, or smooshed up Wonder Bread. 

8.    If all else fails, start a blog.

Kumquat "Couscous"

It's kumquat season!  I only discovered these amazing little fruits as an adult living in sunny California, but I am hooked to these babies.  If you've never had them, you gotta try one. They are surprisingly sweet on the outside and super sour on the inside.  My friend Rebekah calls them "nature's Starbursts." You eat the whole thing, skin and all.  I love the strong flavor and also how pretty they look when they are cut up into little orange "wheels."  I like to slice them up and throw them into salads and pilafs or snack on them whole.

Couscous is made from semolina wheat flour- basically it's just tiny bits of traditional wheat pasta.  So it is definitely NOT gluten free.  But I recently discovered Lundberg makes a brown rice "couscous" that is gluten free.  It's not exactly like the real thing, but it's tasty and easy to make.  You can also use quinoa or just rice for this recipe if you can't find the Lundberg couscous.

Here is my recipe for kumquat "couscous."  The measurements are not exact, so you should play around with your favorite spices and herbs!

Kumquat "Couscous"

Ingredients:
1 box of Lundberg Brown Rice Couscous
1 clove of garlic
1 teaspoon of turmeric
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1 teaspoon of salt
1/2 a teaspoon of black pepper
1 small bunch of parsley
3 scallions
Olive oil
1/2 cup of pine nuts or sliced almonds
8 or so kumquats
half a lemon or orange

Directions:
1.  Boil water for couscous following directions on the box.
2.  Add crushed garlic, turmeric, salt, cinnamon, and pepper into water.
3.  When water is boiling add the couscous, plus some olive oil.
4.  Cover and let cook, following directions on the box.
5.  Wash and cut parsley and scallions.
6.  Wash and cut kumquats into thin discs, letting the seeds squeeze out (you don't want them in your couscous!)
7.  When couscous is done cooking add some extra salt and pepper and spices.
8.  Mix in fresh herbs, kumquats, and nuts.
9.  Squeeze some some lemon or orange juice on top and mix so flavors are combined.
10. Serve warm and enjoy!