Day 6:
Breakfast: Banana Blueberry Smoothie
I just have to say that if massive amounts of fruit wouldn't do horrendous things to people, I could drink this smoothie all day long. I'm happy that it pretty much gives me a full days serving of fruit, and it doesn't taste healthy even though it's full of good stuff. I also love that I use frozen blueberries because then I don't have to use any ice. In my opinion, ice is just a way of unnecessarily watering it down.
Morning Snack: Snack Bar
So this is the snack bar that I'm always talking about. I buy multiple boxes of these every single time they're on sale. Every. single. time.
I will fully admit that they're not absolutely amazing, but they taste great, they're moderately priced, and they're capable of holding me over for a minimum of half an hour when I'm absolutely famished. Typically, I can eat one and I'm good for at least an hour.
Lunch: Pit Smoked Barbecue Sub (from a restaurant)
Yep--I went out to eat again. Two days in a row is some sort of record for me. I don't personally care for tuna, and todays lunch was supposed to be a tuna fish sandwich. My initial plan was to run home this afternoon for a sandwich, but I swung by a friends office this afternoon, and she asked if I wanted to go to one of my favorite restaurants down the street from her. I felt sort of guilty eating there without my husband because we normally order delivery (yes, I'm lucky enough that we have a restaurant that makes safe gluten-free food AND delivers), so I was sure to ask him if he wanted me to bring him a sandwich. (he declined because he was looking forward to our dinner)
This picture could have been better, but it arrived at my table and I started trying to close the sandwich. I then got freaked out that it wasn't actually gluten-free bread (this is a very common fear of mine). As usual, I felt horrible about it, but I waited for the waitress to check on us and I asked once again if it was truly gluten-free, and she explained what their regular bread looks like. While I was waiting, I had taken a bite of my pickle because that hadn't touched the bread although I realized it could have been contaminated other ways if the bread was not gluten-free. So this is my picture of a messed up sandwich, and a partially eaten pickle.
Afternoon Snack: skipped
I had a pretty late lunch, so I wasn't really hungry for a snack today which is quite unusual for me. In the interest of full disclosure, I had to be honest that I skipped it. (I also haven't looked for a pudding that meets my dietary needs.)
Dinner: Chicken Tenders w/Oven Baked Fries & Steamed Artichoke (technically "turkey tenders")
When it comes to dinner tonight, first I have to say that I'm still impressed that I'm able to make "breaded" items because I failed at it numerous times even prior to my diagnosis of Celiac Disease. It could be the reason I love this book so much (the Easy 30 Day Gluten Free Diet)--I'm actually capable of breading things now. Second, I have to say that I need to do some research prior to purchasing an artichoke again. I've never succeeded at purchasing a really good one, and the one I had tonight was the worst I've ever picked. My husband said it definitely wasn't ripe enough (he checked and told me this after it was already cooked), and it didn't even have a heart, which made me sad as that's my favorite part.
Moving on, I took lots of pictures tonight to help walk people through the process. (Please note I base my order of items based on how long they will take--I assume this is how everyone does it, but I suppose I could be wrong.)
We started with fries because they take the longest. We cut them into "home fries" as it's a little easier, and we wanted something different from the other night. We didn't have any large bags to shake them in, but thankfully my husband is really good at tossing things in a bowl to mix them, so we used a large glass bowl to coat them in olive oil. (I apologize that you cannot see the bowl.)
Next, we spread them on a cookie sheet that we had already sprinkled salt across. We've been having some sticking issues with our fries, and it seemed like that has worked before, so we went with it. We still had issues with them sticking, but I think we need to spray the cookie sheet too even though the potatoes are coated in oil.
Next, they went in the oven, and the end result was this (they are pictured with barbecue sauce, and they have already been plated).
Once the fries were in the oven, we started prepping the turkey and the water for the artichoke was nearly boiling. This is the artichoke in the pan. (If you need instructions on how to properly cook and eat an artichoke, there is a description in the book describing the process if you're doing the challenge with the book--I would have been completely lost without this, although I'm sure you could look it up on the internet)
Next was finishing up the turkey prep. We cut the turkey into smallish pieces so we can ensure each turkey tender will fully cook without risking burning the outside. This is the turkey cut up and ready to go on the cutting board. (We used Jennie-O fresh turkey.)
Next the turkey goes in the egg wash.
And then it goes into the flour (I apologize for the fuzzy photo and for the fact that you can't really tell there is a chunk of turkey in there.)
Next, the pieces go into the pan of oil to cook.
I personally don't think it looks incredibly appetizing in the pan, but they are oh so good once you're eating them. I think mine sort of look like chicken nuggets based on the way they were cut, but the good news is they were not made from random chicken parts like many chicken nuggets are. We used Sweet Baby Ray's as our dipping sauce.
And finally one last photo of dinner just because it was so good.
Evening Snack: Pineapple!
I'm really hoping my papaya is ready in two days because I'm really looking forward to it on day 8. I need to check it again tonight and throw it in the paper bag if it isn't looking ripe yet.
(I apologize for any typos in this post. I was exhausted by time I finished it, so I didn't edit.)
