Tasty Tuesday

As I mentioned yesterday, 

I've got some pretty exciting news for y'all.

My friend Brianna contacted me about a link up series

she's hosting with Tamara. 

If you don't follow their blogs,

you definitely need to.

They both are pretty talented in the kitchen

and have decided to share these talents with you

via a new weekly series:

Tasty Tuesdays.

While I am not nearly as talented as these two lovely ladies,

I try. 

And as you may or may not know

(I sure do hope you know,

because I've kind of sort of mentioned it a lot lately)

I've started eating gluten-free.

~

{Background Story: Scroll down if you're not interested. I totally won't be offended. It's long.}

I had several reasons for wanting to eat gluten-free.

First of all, I'm really fascinated about the effects

different foods can have on your body.

It's not just "junk food makes you fat". 

Our whole chemical make-up is determined by what we consume

and it doesn't only effect our weight, 

but it also effects our energy levels,

skin, immune systems, hormones, etc.

Disclaimer: I am not a nutritionist. And when I say I'm fascinated by this stuff,

I mean I find it interesting, 

but I'm the first to admit, I don't have all the answers.

I don't even have half of them really.

I just have my opinions, which could very well be wrong.

Last year I was officially diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis,

which is an auto-immune disorder 

that makes your body think your joints are bad

and starts attacking them.

I had been showing symptoms for several years,

but all of my results were so inconsistent

it was hard to make a firm diagnosis

and a firm treatment plan.

Once we were finally able to conclusively say 

it was in fact rheumatoid arthritis,

I began taking Humera

aka shots every other week.

Needle shots, not tequila shots.

Lame, I know.

In October, I started getting this eczema type rash on my legs.

I've always had dry skin,

but never like this.

The "spots", as they've been dubbed, itched like hell.

They're big and red and gross. 

And nothing was helping.

Until my sweet husband started Googling. 

He found out that there is a direct correlation

between both dairy consumption/gluten consumption

and eczema. 

Pair that with the yeast-free diet Stephanie at BEAUtiful Mess swears by

and I was convinced. 

I needed to make a change.

So I did.

It's evolved over the past month and a half. 

I started following Stephanie's plan to a tee. 

But because I wasn't necessarily trying to lose weight,

I modified it a tad a lot.

I didn't cut out sugar completely

and I've been eating fruit since the beginning.

I also haven't completely eliminated dairy 

because I love it too good. 

I have limited it A TON. I might eat 2-4 servings a week,

but that is significantly less than what I used to eat.

As far as the wheat goes,

it is completely out. 

Everything I buy is gluten-free. 

And you'd be surprised just how much you can substitute.

Minus the fact that I'm not eating bread

and I'm eating a lot more salads,

I'm still finding ways to cook my "normal" recipes,

just in a much more healthier,

gluten-free way.

~

Recipe time!

One of my most favorite dishes when I was little 

was Tuna Noodle Casserole.

I know, I know. 

Nothing fancy, but I could eat my weight in that stuff.

Once the favorite child my brother was born

we stopped eating Tuna Noodle as much.

He wasn't really a fan.

We'd have it every once in a while,

but not a lot.

In fact, it wasn't until a few weeks ago

when I was just craving some comfort food

that I finally made it all by myself.

And let me tell you,

it is the easiest most delicious meal you'll ever make.

And you can do it completely gluten-free!!

Can I get an amen.

Here's what you'll need:

- 1 box gluten-free noodles (elbow noodles are the best)

- 8 oz. gluten-free cream of mushroom soup

- 1 can white tuna 

- shredded cheese

1. Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.

2. Boil and drain pasta.

3. Rinse and drain tuna.

4. Mix one can cream of mushroom soup with one can water.

5. Combine cooked pasta, tuna, and cream of mushroom/water mixture in a casserole dish.

6. Back 25-30 minutes. 

** Sprinkle cheese on top and bake for an additional 5 minutes, or until melted. 

It's that simple.

You'll notice, this recipe is not dairy free.

There is dairy free cheese or vegan cheese

that would be a great substitute if you're trying to cut that out completely.

I normally just try to make sure this is the only dairy I eat for the day.

So here's the deal.

Go visit Brianna and Tamara to see what they've posted today

and then get your culinary skills ready.

The link up will be open starting next Tuesday 

and you'll be able to share your own delicious recipes

as well as check out everyone else's

(which is always my favorite part.)

Hugs,