Healthy Changes & Cashew Chicken

I noticed my hips spread right after I met Nick (circa 9 months ago), and bought a size bigger jeans. Fine, whatever, I though. Hips puts me closer to the feminine curviness of my Dominican cousins. A few weeks ago, I noticed how tight my jeans, my skirts, my everything had gotten across the butt/abdominal pooch. Okay, I said. Time to hit the gym. I also reevaluated my dietary intake, and realized that "waffles and wine night," a dinner I make when I'm exhausted from work and have no leftovers, was happening quite frequently. Overall, my protein intake was down a little bit, due to my infatuation with simple G-F carbs. And green things? Virtually non-existent.

My roommate and I got a gym membership together, so I have been burning energy 2+ times a week. I discovered pilates and how Aja, my pilates instructor can work out muscles I didn't recall learning about in my Anatomy and Physiology class. My food diet is a lot more balanced. At work, I have committed to eating a salad at lunch. I've changed the type of leafy-base, and added (thanks to Nick's inspiration) things like goat cheese, walnuts, and (my new addiction) dried cranberries. I'm back into my routine of protein at every meal. I feel 100 times better.

The purpose of my blog has always been to keep things easy, simple, and very delicious for the overly-busy Celiac. Working full time and doing long-distance school for a post-bacc certification has reminded me of the importance of living the most enjoyable, balanced, and healthy G-F life possible.

Last week I was going through the fridge, looking for what I had leftover from other "big cooks." Here is what I came up with



Bare Bones Cashew Chicken
* Note: this recipe is adaptable to what you do or don't have in your fridge*
* 2 green onions, chopped, using the bulb and the green
* part of a sweet onion (I used vaidallia, but this ingredient is optional)
* bell pepper, chopped into small pieces (I only had green.)
* cashew pieces
* 2 cloves of garlic
* oil- EVOO (extra virgin olive oil), peanut, or sesame
* chicken, cut into small bite-sized morsels, salted and pepped to taste

1. Heat oil in a wok or frying pan, over medium heat. Add the chicken.

2. When the chicken has been seared on the outside, add the remaining ingredients. (If you prefer your cashews to be slightly mushy, add them with the chicken at the start of the recipe.) Saute until the chicken has cooked through. If you are a soy-eater, I would assume you may want to splash a bit of soy sauce here.

3. Serve over brown rice. Enjoy! Take the leftovers to work with you the next day for lunch.