A New Wrinkle--Gluten-Free

It's been pretty quiet here at ye olde blog. A lot of things have happened over the last few weeks, mostly medical-related. I finally have decent health insurance (thanks, husband!), so that meant that I could afford to not only pay the insurance premium, but also pay the deductible and co-insurance so that I could actually see a doctor. I'd been having a lot of stomach issues lately, and I needed to deal with that. After several appointments, a few trips over to Casper to see a specialist, bloodwork, tests, and a colonoscopy/endoscopy later--issues are being resolved.

Initially, the doctors suspected Celiac disease. Celiac is genetic, and it means that the body sees gluten (a protein found in wheat, rye, spelt, and barley) as a toxin. Gluten binds to the villi in the small intestine, and prevents your body from absorbing nutrients and processing food as it should. The good news: I don't have Celiac. Bad news: I am gluten-intolerant.

For me, eating gluten means stomach cramps. Pain. Feeling my intestines squeeze and shift through the digestion process. No early-warning system that a twosie is coming. I live in Wyoming--there isn't always a bathroom when you need one, especially if your body can only give you an "EMERGENCY: CODE BROWN. PROCEED TO THE NEAREST TOILET IMMEDIATELY FOR EMERGENCY COLON EVACUATION" notice.

Thankfully, cutting out gluten cuts out the above symptoms.

So, this hippie is focusing on gluten-free foods, gluten-free cooking, and how to manage this in the emptiest state in the union. It's hard to find certain ingredients in Wyoming, and harder still to find specialty items. Thankfully, where I live has an organic grocery store, and a gluten-free grocery store. Both are well-stocked with gluten-free items. Plus, I shop at the Farmer's Market and collect a Bountiful Basket every week--those whole, unprocessed fruits and veggies are naturally gluten-free. But I don't want to give up my favorite things, either, so I'm attempting to make those gluten-free as well.

Here's an old favorite, updated to be gluten-free.

Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

This soup is known among my friends as The Soup. As in, "Stop by after work for a bite. I made The Soup." It's hearty, it's filling, it's a big bowl of comfort. It's what I want when I'm snarfling with a cold, or just want a bowl of soup.

Here's what you'll need to make food:

2-3 T olive oil
1/4 cup butter
1 big onion, diced
4-6 cloves of garlic, minced
4-5 ribs of celery, diced (leaves are great)
1 lb. of carrots, peeled and sliced
2-3 chicken breasts (or thighs--can be bone-in, skin-on, whatever you like--just leave them as they are)
1 bay leaf
1 T dried parsley
1 1/2 t dried basil
1/4 t dried oregano
pinch of fennel seed
pinch of dried ginger
1/2 t ground turmeric
1/4 t cayenne pepper
1 t salt
1/2 t pepper
chicken soup base
water
1 cup arborio rice
1 cup wild rice
2 T cornstarch

How to turn the above into The Soup:

Grab a big giant stockpot. Heat the olive oil and butter in the pan, and let the butter melt. Add in the onion, garlic, celery, and carrots; sautee that in the oil until the carrots start to soften a bit and the onions are translucent. It'll take about 10 minutes or so. Next, add the chicken and the spices (except for the soup base). Add enough water to cover everything completely--you'll want to leave about 3-4 inches at the top of the pot--and add chicken soup base according to the number of cups of water it takes to fill your pot (1 t per cup of water). Or use chicken stock. Either way, simmer the soup for another 30 minutes or so, until the chicken cooks through. While the chicken cooks, start your wild rice in a separate saucepan--1 cup of rice, 4 cups of water, let it simmer for about an hour. When the chicken is done (about 45 minutes after your mixture starts simmering), pull it, and set it aside to be chopped up. Add the arborio rice to the stock, and let that simmer for about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, chop up the chicken, removing bones and skin, and add it back to the soup, and add in your cooked wild rice.

Before you serve the soup, you'll need to bring it to a high simmer/low boil. While the soup reaches that temperature, mix your cornstarch with 1/4 cup of water, and add that slurry to your soup. When it boils, it'll thicken up nicely. Remove your bay leaf, wait for the soup to cool down just a tad, and devour.