Go to Meals

   I know we all have a go to meal, one that's easy to prepare, and doesn't break the bank. Mine usually includes any type of canned or frozen veggie I have on hand, and ground turkey meat. Sometimes I substitute it for ground hamburger meat too, and toss in salsa for a spicy taste.
Last Friday I made this go to meal, and it made enough to last me for 3 lunches and dinners for two people, although after the second day my boyfriend preferred to eat something else. I don't expect him to eat everything I do, its just easier to make enough for a few days, so I don't have to cook for myself.

Here is the List of ingredients which I used  to make this dish.

3lbs of ground turkey meat ( or hamburger )
1 16 Oz bag of Spinach
1 14 Oz bag of frozen Corn
1 14.4 Oz can of diced tomatoes
2 4 Oz cans diced green chilies
2 cloves diced garlic
1 white onion chopped

I cooked the meat in a separate pan from the Spinach. Once the meat was completely cooked, I added in the sautéed spinach, tomatoes, corn, and chilies. I also added the onion and garlic to a bit of Olive oil before I sautéed the spinach in it. Mix everything together, and let shimmer for about 10-15


Adding all of the ingredients to the cooked Turkey meat.

I also served it with a package of steamable potatoes that I found at the dollar tree. The package states gluten-free on it, and they weren't to bad, but next time I may just add diced sweet potato to the mix.

Here is what the final product looked like.

I love making extra so that I have enough for two days or so, that way I don't have to cook. So what's your go too meal ? 

Hope you enjoyed this post, till next time have s wonderful day !!

Jen 

Once Upon Beginings

So once upon a time, this blog was supposed to be my younger sister Kaitlyn‘s, but that didn’t work out so well. My idea was to help her get started documenting her journey with Celiac disease. But at the time she was 21 and working as preschool teacher ,so she never had time to sit down and begin. Now fast forward 2 years, and we learned that our Mother was now beginning to show signs of having Celiac as well, and that definitely sent me into denial. I mean what are the odds that this hereditary disease could possibly be lurking in my gene pool and effect me too , Right ? According to what www.celiac.org states “People with a first-degree relative with celiac disease (parent, child, or sibling) have a 1 in 10 risk of developing celiac disease” …… Well isn’t that just great because as if being allergic to Sulfites, Cephalosporin Antibiotics, and Yellow Dye #5 (AKA tartrazine in medications) were not enough lets toss in a nice healthy dash of having to be Gluten Free for the rest of my life. Now I know it sounds like I’m angry and acting like a spoiled brat ( probably because I am, and I’ve been in denial for a while) but helping out someone else is always easier than placing restraints on yourself an following through. Although my bodies side effects to gluten foods, are being to affect more than just me, and I’m pretty positive that both my Sister and Boyfriend would love me even more with out them. An with that being said, today is the first official day that I cut out gluten, and learn to adjust my life in more ways than just one. My 2015 New Year’s resolution was to get healthy and lose weight, which I had been doing by cutting out a good amount of dairy, gluten, and caffeine. I was able to lose 8 pounds in about 2 weeks and then I gained back 2 pounds around week 6, which may not seem like a lot but I started to notice a difference in my body. The inches and weight I had lost were amazing but as I began to slowly add back gluten laced foods into my system, I hit a wall, and now I know why. After a few days of upset stomach and heartburn, my Sister looked at me and said “ Stop being in denial, you probably have a sensitivity and the early signs of Celiac as well.“ Enter in a vision of being on the Jungle Cruise and the Skippers cheesy line of “If you don’t believe me then your in De-Nile “, and low and behold a light bulb goes off. Well its lunch time and I’m starving, so until the next entry, thanks for stopping by, and I hope you come back for more fun insights into my journey.

Sincerely,
Once Upon a Celiac

AKA Jen