Thai Chicken & Pineapple Salad

Quick recipe for a hot summer night. Enough for two people.

Ingredients

2 cups diced leftover roasted or bbq chicken
1 cup fresh diced pineapple
2 tbsps chopped cilantro (may substitute with basil)
2 tbsps chopped fresh mint
1 Thai red chili pepper (seeded, minced)
1 tbsp apricot jelly
1/4 cup ginger sesame dressing

In a large bowl, mix chicken, pineapple, cilantro & fresh mint.

In a small bowl whisk apricot jelly, chili & dressing together.

Drizzle mixture over chicken mixture.

Toss well and serve. Great for lettuce wraps or salad roll filling.

Enjoy :)

Perogies

After years of not being able to eat perogies. I've finally broke down and made a successful batch of perogies. For being gluten free it is still a very delicate dough like all gluten free doughs.

2 cups corn flour
1/4 cup tapioca starch
2 tbsps guar gum
1 pinch of salt
1 cup warm water
2-3 tbsps vegetable oil
Cornstarch or extra tapioca starch for dusting and kneading

Mix all the above ingredients together well. You will have a sticky dough. Use cornstarch or tapioca starch to dust a clean flat surface.  Knead dough and roll out to 1/8" thickness. Flipping the dough and dusting with more starch to prevent sticking. Use a circle cookie cutter to cut out rounds of dough.

Fill with your favourite fillings. Fold in half into semi-circles and press the edges to seal.

Boil perogies in a pot of boiling water till they float freely. Remove from the water and set aside.

In a skillet melt 2 tbsps of butter. Brown some sausage, bacon or kielbasa and sautee some diced onions and peppers. Add perogies and brown the sides. Be careful as the edges may break off, so be gentle. Remember the dough is delicate even when it's cooked. Pan fry till a little bit golden brown.

Serve with sour cream and diced green onion.

Bon apetite!

Vivian

Cinnamon Almond Granola

Ingredients:
2 cups rolled oats (gluten & wheat free)
3/4 cup sliced almonds
3 tbsps cinnamon
3 tbsps coconut oil
3 tbsps honey, agave or brown sugar

Mix all ingredients except almonds thoroughly and bake at 300°F till crunchy and slightly browned. Toss in sliced almonds. Cool and store in air tight container for up to 2 weeks.

Sprinkle on cereal, ice cream, yogurt or fruits for a healthy topping.

Simple Potato Salad

Ingredients:
4 cups whole pearl/mini potatoes cooked diced with skin on
2 hardboiled eggs shelled diced
GF honey mustard
1 tbsp dried dill
1/2 tsp paprika or cayenne or fresh red thai chillies minced
1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper
6 green olives pitted diced
Substitute olives with a large pickle for your preference.
Optional: 1/4 cup onion minced
Optional: 1 spring of green onion finely sliced

Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl. Add salt if you'd like. But the salad tastes good without. Add more honey mustard if you prefer more dressing.

Well.ca Review

Hello Foodies,

Today I'm back with a mini haul from Well.ca. If you are not familiar with them, Well.ca is a Canadian online health + beauty store based out of Ontario. Woot! That's where I'm from :)

Everything was carefully wrapped and a lovely handwritten message from Deb. I thought that was a sweet personal touch.

Thank you for the prompt shipment and the package arrived in perfect condition. I loved how they wrapped my cookies in bubble wrap and put them in a separate box. No one likes a bag of crumbs. :)

For those that enjoy gluten free or organic treats, this website has got plenty. And for those who like to cook they've got some cool gadgets too. On my next purchase I plan on purchasing one of those julienne peelers to make myself some raw veggie noodles.

Thanks Well.ca, I will be back for another shopping spree soon.

Vivian
maydaydesigns.blogspot.ca

Chewy Oat Bar

Hello Foodies,

Today I'm back with a comparable recipe to the Starbucks Oat Bar. This buttery, creamy and semi-sweet chewy goodness. Great for snacks and breakfast on the go. I don't necessarily make them into a bar form, sometimes I just roll them into 1" balls and call it a day.

Here's what you'll need:

1 cup quick oats
1 cup quick oats, blended into a coarse flour in a food processor/blender
1/4 cup butter, unsalted
1/2 tsp salt
4 tbsp cinnamon (optional)
1 tbsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp raw honey
2 tbsp agave nectar
2 tbsp golden cane sugar
2 tbsp hot water

In a saucepan melt butter at medium/high heat. Add salt, vanilla, honey, agave nectar, cane sugar and bring to a boil. Once it is boiling, turn the heat down to low and cook for another minute. Make sure your liquid is not sticking to the saucepan, stir to melt the sugar.

In a large bowl mix 1 cup of quick oats with the other cup of blended quick oat flour. Mix well with cinnamon.

Pour the hot liquid into the dry ingredients and mix well. Add hot water, 1 tablespoon at a time until you've reached your desired consistency. NOTE: You may need more than 2 tbsps of hot water. Add more water if the mixture is too dry or if you like it to be more chewy.

In a greased rectangular pan, press the mixture into the pan and level off with your hands or a spatula. Or you can take a spoonful and roll it into a ball, repeat till you have a cookie sheet full of them.

Place in fridge for at least 1 hour to set. Remove from fridge and cut into squares. Store in an air tight container.

Hope you like my take on the delightful Starbuck's snack.

Enjoy!

Vivian
YourInnerGreek

Hoisin Sauce Recipe

Great for bbq, chicken and seafood. The term 'hoisin,' means seafood. But traditionally this sauce is used when serving Peking Duck as well as Crispy Suckling Pig in Chinese culture. In Vietnam, it is used as a dipping sauce for soup noodles and salad rolls.
Here is what you will need:

4 tbsps gluten free tamari sauce
2 tbsps nut butter
1½ tbsps agave nectar
2 tsps apple cider vinegar
⅛ tsp garlic powder
2 tsps sesame seed oil
2 tsps siracha sauce
⅛ tsp black pepper

Whisk all the ingredients together and voila. Great for wraps and sandwiches. Use it as a bbq glaze instead of store bought bbq sauce. Brush onto salmon steaks and bake in the oven till it is done. Sprinkle with fresh cut green onions and thai chillies.