More Chicken! With a Bite.

Despite appearances to the contrary, I don't dig on beak.  Poultry is not my thing.  I'm not sure why...I get that its a great protein, generally accepted as healthy.  I just don't particularly like it. But, it is cheap.  And cooking on a budget lately has mandated chicken-creativity.

I actually loved tonight's dinner.  I'll call it: Chicken with a Bite.

Take some chicken.  We had 1.38 lbs of chicken breast.  Chop it up into bite size pieces and sauté it up with a few tablespoons of olive oil.  Squeeze half a piece of lemon over the chicken as it cooks.

Meanwhile, chop up whatever vegetables you have on hand.  Add in some chunks of pineapple.
1/2 onion
1 summer squash
1 carrot
3 pieces of celery
1 red pepper
1 orange pepper
2 cloves of garlic, minced

After the chicken cooks, set it aside in a plate.  Stir-fry the veggies until cooked to taste.

Meanwhile, make the sauce.  Stir together:
1/4 cup of soy sauce

1 tablespoon of fish sauce
A big dollop of siracha
The juice of one lime
1/2 teaspoon of cornstarch

Add the chicken back to the vegetables and stir together.  Pour the sauce over and mix together.  Sprinkle some basil over the whole thing.  Voila!

National Museum of the American Indian

As any worn out, hot, thirsty tourist who braves a DC summer can tell you, there aren't a lot of places to eat on the Mall.  The Smithsonian circuit just hasn't traditionally been terribly eat-er friendly.  Sure, you can grab an over-priced, dry sandwhich at one of the ubiquitous cafes...unless you can't.  And after absorbing all that culture and history, the last thing anyone wants to do is subsist on a random yogurt and some sad fruit.  The answer to a traveling celiac's prayers: the National Museum of the American Indian and its delightful eatery, mitsitim. 

While the National Museum of the American Indian created a bit of controversy when it opened, one thing has never been in dispute: the food is fantastic.  The cafe is a part of the cultural experience.  It is cafeteria style eating with five unique food stations representing the broad regions encompassing the American Indian tribes.  Thus, the Northern Woodlands menu will represent cooking techniques and ingredients traditional to tribes in that region and very different from, for instance, the Great Plains menu. 

Besides being interesting and, in my experience, delicious, the food at mitsitim has another major point in its favor.  The appropriate options are clearly labelled gluten-free! Delight! And the gluten-free options are not at all limited to the bland and the boring.  Rather, a happy celiac can dig into a mouthwatering tamale or snack on some quinoa. Check it out.  You'll be happy you did.  (The Museum itself is pretty incredible too.)

May is the Month for Celiacs!

in New York, Maryland and North Carolina.  I'll go with it. 

It's great to see that lobbying efforts in the community are paying off--government officials seem to be grasping the magnitude of the potential political impact of an effectively unified celiac voting block (sounds scary, doesn't it?)  But if you think about it, celiacs are people who, almost by definition, are forced to be activists. Even those of us without any prior advocacy experience learn quickly that the most effective means of safeguarding our health is to speak up and educate the larger community. 

There are any number of ways to celebrate Celiac Disease Awareness Month.  You can: take a cooking class; attend a fundraiser; participate in a race to raise awareness; go out to eat at a new restaurant with a friend who is NOT a celiac (thus, educating both the restaurant and your friend); get tested for common vitamin and mineral deficiencies...the list goes on and on.  Whatever you do--get out there and start talking.  Its the best way to honor the spirit of the month and raise awareness!