Gluten Free & God Seeking

Monday, October 1, 2018

I Can Make It Gluten Free From Scratch! - Yummy Pulled Chicken Sliders

I'm always on the look out for a delicious, easy to make weekend meal.  These  pulled chicken sliders will have your family asking for more!  When my husband was helping a friend paint their house this summer, I put all of this in my crock and brought it over for dinner. Cole slaw, watermelon,  and potato chips make this a perfect Saturday supper. 

I modified this sauce recipe when I made it last year, and sorry I don't remember where my daughter got that initial recipe. I really like making sauces from scratch!!  For this recipe I used Trader Joe's chicken breast tenderloins, and one 2.5 bag was enough for 5 people and 3 of them were ravenous hard-working men!! And I still had enough for leftovers. 


 

Pulled Chicken Sliders


1.  Rinse 2.5 pounds of Trader Joe's chicken breast tenderloins.

2.  Chop 1 onion and 1/2 of a large bell pepper.

3.  Put the chicken tenderloins into a crock pot.  Put the chopped vegetables on top and cook on low for 2 to 3 hours.  Drain off all the liquid.

4.  Meanwhile prepare this amazing from scratch sauce - In a bowl put: (cover until needed)
(1)  1 1/2 cups of ketchup
(2)  1/2 cup of balsamic vinegar
(3)  1/4 cup of agave syrup and 1/3 cup of brown sugar
(4) 1 T g-f Worcestershire sauce, 1 T of Dijon mustard.
(5)  Mince 1 clove of garlic
(6) 1 teaspoon of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper.

5.  After draining the liquid off the chicken, pour the sauce over the top of the chicken and let the chicken cook for 4 to 5 hours on low. 

6.  Use a fork and shred the chicken.  Mix until all the chicken is covered with sauce. 

7.  Taste and make any adjustments. (I love it the way it is!)


These sliders are delicious with a bit of KFC Copycat Cole Slaw on top.

List of other chicken recipes on this blog:

Asian:
Authentic Chinese BBQ Chicken  (From my friend Rose)
The Real Deal GF Teriyaki Chicken  (From my church cookbook, Come & Dine)
Gluten Free Soy Sauce Chicken   (Modified from Internet search)
Tasty Gluten Free Filipino Chicken Adobo  (Modified from Internet search)
Gluten Free Sweet & Sour Chicken (From my church cookbook, Come & Dine)
Make Your Own G.F. Teriyaki Bowls  (From me!)

Italian & Greek:
Chicken Souvlaki   (Marinade for chicken from my son-in-law)
Gluten Free Chicken Cacciatore With Peppers & Mushrooms  (Modified from my mother-in-law)
Delicious Gluten Free Chicken Parmesan   (From my church cookbook, Come & Dine)
My Son-in-Law's Own Recipe for Greek Chicken
Delicious Chicken Florentine Lasagna  (From my church cookbook)

Mexican:
Pollo Guisado (Mexican Braised Chicken)  (From a church friend in Phoenix)
Belizean Chicken, Black Beans & Rice, and Belizean Coleslaw  (From my daughter's family)
Make Your Own Chicken Burrito Bowls (From a collection of my recipes)

American Favorites:
The Best Gluten Free Oven Fried Chicken   (From my sister-in-law)
Curried Mushroom & Apple Chicken  (From my church cookbook Come & Dine)
A Gluten Free Twist on Tarragon Chicken - (From my  church Come & Dine cookbook)
Saucy Chicken 
Chicken & Mushrooms in Wine Sauce   -( From my church Come & Dine cookbook)
Summery Lemon Chicken - (From my daughter-in-law's family cookbook)

BBQ:
The Best Homemade Chicken BBQ Sauce  (From my daughter-in-law's family reunion cookbook)
Amazing BBQ Chicken    (From my daughter-in-law's family reunion cookbook)
Blackberry BBQ Chicken - A Tasty Sauce You'll Have to Try! (Off a package of blackberries)
Ray's BBQ Chicken - (From my daughter-in-law's family cookbook)
Country Style BBQ Chicken - (From my daughter-in-law's family cookbook)
Great for Summer BBQ - Lemon Rosemary Chicken Legs  (From my church cookbook, Come & Dine)

Fantastic Gluten Free Chicken Kabobs  (From my church cookbook, Come & Dine)
Jeremy's Original BBQ Rub For Thighs  (My son's very own concoction!)

Monday, September 24, 2018

Taking a Closer Look at Psalm 23 - Part 1 of 2

     The 23rd Psalm is famous.  Most people either have heard it or can recite it from heart. I heard this psalm in Sunday School when I was in 1st or 2nd grade.  For most of my life this psalm just conjured up pictures of a kind shepherd leading his flock through lush green pastures to a pristine lake.  That's all I would still be thinking if it weren't for chapter 11 of the Life-Study of Psalms.  I learned from reading this chapter that all the imagery of this psalm actually depicts five stages of the Lord's shepherding us. Who would have thought?!

     In the first two verses of this psalm  I learned that the contented sheep signify the 1st stage of the Lord's shepherding that occurred when we first got saved.  Instead of feeding on the dry stubble in the world, we are now feasting on the rich pastures in God's word and drinking the refreshing life-giving water of the Spirit. What a difference! 
 
     In verse 3 David speaks of the shepherd restoring our soul and guiding us on the paths of righteousness; this is the 2nd stage of the Lord's shepherding. This causes me to picture a shepherd using the crook of his staff to bring back any wayward sheep on the path.  In this section Witness Lee says to restore is to revive, renew and transform. 

    So this showed me that in this stage the Lord's shepherding is more personal.  I've found that as I'm feeding on the word and drinking the Spirit every day, the Lord within me will point things out that are taking me off the path of righteousness. 

     I learned from reading the Life-Study of Matthew that righteousness means being right with God and man. Like you I'm not always right with God or people in my life.  Inside my heart the Lord kindly reproves me, and that's His way of correcting me so I can return to the path of righteousness. 

      The 3rd stage of the Lord's shepherding of us is seen in Psalm 23:4 where David talks about walking through the valley of the shadow of death.  This includes all the sorrows that are part of our Christian journey. I got a lot of help from brother Lee's fellowship on pages 144-145  about knowing the Lord's shepherding in the valley:

 When we are in the valley, the best way for us to deal with it is to rest.  The tests in the valley always tempt us to do something so that we can come out of the valley.  But the more we do, the more the valley extends. We just need to be quiet, to rest.  Our resting in the Lord will shorten the valley, reduce the shadow, and remove the death. We should not talk about our being in the valley. The more we talk, the wider the valley becomes. The best way is for us to forget that we are in the valley, because we have the Lord with us. We do not fear evil, because He is with us....If we have had the proper experience in the valley, we can testify that it was a place for us to enjoy the Lord's presence in such a close way (Lee, Witness. Life-Study of Psalms. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1993, Print).

        Through such beautiful imagery, David leads us through all the stages he had experienced of the Lord's shepherding him. Every day we can know Him a little more as our shepherd!   Next time I'll post  the last two stages of the Lord's shepherding.
 
You can listen to excerpts of Witness Lee's speaking the Life-Studies of Psalms on Life Study of the Bible  with Witness Lee.   You can also read the online Life-Study of Psalms and check out other resources available to enhance your study of the Bible on Living Stream Ministry's website.


Others Posts on the Life-Study of Psalms:

What is the Focus of the Psalms?
How Does Psalm 8 Show Us God's Purpose in Creating Man?
Taking a Closer Look at Psalm 23 - Part 1 of 2
Taking a Closer Look at Psalm 23 - Part 2 of 2
Why is God's House Important in Psalms 25 -41?
Seeing the Divine Romance in Psalm 45
What Did the Psalmist Perceive in Psalm 73?
What are the Highways to Zion in Psalm 84?
Why Did the Psalmist Delight in God's Law in Psalm 119?
  

Friday, September 7, 2018

Take Off the Heat With A Carne Asada Salad

     I love to cook, but I'm not like one of those geniuses in the kitchen that comes up with their own recipes.  With the summer heat, I had to think of ways to not use the oven. My salad garden was going bonkers, so I had loads of lettuce and kale.  To solve that problem,  I made  a lot of  main dish salads. When my husband was helping a friend work on their new house, I offered to make some dinners. 

     I had purchased some grass fed beef; so I thought about using my carne asada recipe, which by the way is a mix of three recipes I came across on the Internet.  I pulled a little bit from each and wa-la came up with an amazing marinade.   Then I thought I'd put some fun choices together so everyone could build their own salad.  It was a  definite hit!



CARNE ASADA SALAD

1.  Prepare meat: 
(1)  Rinse 1.5 pounds of flank steak or something else you'd like to use.
(2)  Marinade -1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, 1/4 cup of red wine vinegar,  1/4 cup lime juice, 2 cloves of minced garlic, 1/2 cup of chopped cilantro, 2 teaspoons of salt, 1 teaspoon of sugar, 1 teaspoon chili powder, 1/2 teaspoon cumin, and 1 teaspoon of black pepper.
(3)  Refrigerate for 4- 6 + hours.
(4)  Grill or cook it in a cast iron pan. Cut in strips.

2.  Prepare quinoa - Put 2 cups of water into a small saucepan with 1 cup of quinoa and cook according to package directions.

3.  Prepare vegetables - Put in a compartmentalized serving tray:
(1)  1 chopped red pepper
(2)  2-3 chopped tomatoes
(3)  3-4 sliced green onions
(4)  Quinoa
(5)  Drained canned corn
(6)  Chopped avocados

Serve with tortilla chips and ranch dressing

List of Other Salads on this Blog:

Greens/cabbage:
Make it Yourself Thai Peanut Dressing for Mandarin Salad  (My friend Judi's recipe)
KFC Copycat Cole Slaw   (A friend shared this with me)
Belizean Coleslaw    (From Internet search)
Antioxidant Rich Kale Super Salad  (A copycat from a deli, dressing from Syre School Cookbook)

Main Dish Salads
Gluten Free Chinese Chicken Cabbage Salad   (From my Heritage School Cookbook)
Baja Salad with Black Beans & Quinoa  (A remake from something I ate at a restaurant)
Pasta & Quinoa:
Tasty Gluten Free Pasta Salad  (Something I picked up over 20 years ago!)
Vietnamese Vermicelli Salad Bowls   (From an Internet search)
Michelle's Greek Quinoa Salad   (My foodie daughter's own delicious creation!)
 Another Great Salad with Quinoa - Janah's  Original Quinoa, Cranberry & Feta Salad  (a recipe my daughter came up with)

Vegetable:
Jeremy D's Sensational Greek Salad   (My son-in-law's recipe)
Grandma's Perfect Potato Salad   (Family recipe)
Rose's Refreshing Cucumber Salad   (From a Chinese friend)
A Great BBQ side Salad - Curried Pea Salad  (From my church cookbook, Come & Dine)
Dot's Easy Bean Salad  (Recipe from an  83 yr old friend of my father's)
A Great Summer Side - Broccoli Salad  (From my Come & Dine cookbook)

Fruit:
Grandma Marilyn's Frozen Fruit Salad  (My mother-in-law's recipe)

Friday, August 31, 2018

How Does Psalm 8 Show Us God's Purpose in Creating Man?

     Don't you think the beauty that surrounds us should make us think who created this? In Psalm 8 David took that question up another level and asked God why did you create man? I sort of feel that God set it up like this because when David looked up at the night sky that was studded with stars it obviously evoked wonder within him. 

A friend sent this picture to me.
When I see Your heavens, the works of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained, what is mortal man that You remember him, and the son of man, that You visit him?  Psalm 8:3-4

I read a real thought-provoking Life-Study on Psalm 8; in chapter 5 Witness Lee brings God's creation of man in Genesis 1 together with Psalm 8.   In Genesis 1:26-27 it's clear that God wanted man to express Him with His image and represent Him with His dominion. 

     Long before the fall that occurred in Genesis 3 Satan had rebelled and had been cast by God to the earth  (These are reference verses I picked up from the Life-Study-- Isaiah14:12-16; Ezekiel 28:13-16).  It may have looked as if Satan had won the day. Centuries passed between Genesis and David's writing of this psalm.  It may have even looked like God had given up, but on page 62-63 I learned this wasn't so:  

"Three portions of the Word speak of the same thing concerning man--Genesis 1, Psalm 8, and Hebrews 2. What is revealed in Psalm 8 was first spoken of in Genesis 1. Genesis 1 says that man was commissioned with the authority to rule over all the created things (vv. 26, 28). Psalm 8 repeats this. Then in Hebrews 2:6-8 Paul quotes Psalm 8. These three portions of the Word show that man has been in three stages: created in Genesis 1, fallen in Psalm 8, and redeemed in Hebrews 2....Man is the central object of God in His creation for the accomplishment of His economy to fulfill His heart's desire" (Lee, Witness. Life-Study of Psalms. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1993, Print).
  In this chapter I learned that God didn't give up His purpose that man would have dominion over every created thing including His enemy.  Through this psalm David shares in beautiful poetry God's intention of becoming incarnated to visit man and redeem him. And it amazes me that this psalm also shows us that it's through the praise of God's redeemed people that the enemy's mouth is shut up! 

O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is Your name in all the earth!!!
 
I really like this poster!   I heard on a documentary that if the earth wasn't located on one of the outside arms of our galaxy, all we would see at night would be interstellar dust.  It really makes me feel that God positioned the earth in such a way that we could see so many stars and planets so that we would start asking questions that would lead us to faith in God!!
 
 
 
 You can listen to excerpts of Witness Lee's speaking the Life-Studies of Psalms on Life Study of the Bible  with Witness Lee.   You can also read the online Life-Study of Psalms and check out other resources available to enhance your study of the Bible on Living Stream Ministry's website.


Others Posts on the Life-Study of Psalms:

What is the Focus of the Psalms?
How Does Psalm 8 Show Us God's Purpose in Creating Man?
Taking a Closer Look at Psalm 23 - Part 1 of 2
Taking a Closer Look at Psalm 23 - Part 2 of 2
Why is God's House Important in Psalms 25 -41?
Seeing the Divine Romance in Psalm 45
What Did the Psalmist Perceive in Psalm 73?
What are the Highways to Zion in Psalm 84?
Why Did the Psalmist Delight in God's Law in Psalm 119?


Friday, August 24, 2018

A Northwest Salad Favorite - Cobb Salad With Blackened Salmon & Shrimp

In July my husband and I went to a favorite waterfront restaurant  for a family birthday.  My choices were limited, so the cobb salad on the menu caught my eye. When my salad arrived, it was beautiful and tasted terrific. 

   This summer my salad garden was growing so much lettuce that I've made main dish salads at least twice a week!  So the  week after that dinner, I bought some salmon so I could see if I could make some blackened salmon.  I did a Google and came up with a pretty good recipe. It was so good! Then a few weeks later I made this salad again for some friends.  Tasty!!



Cobb Salad with Blackened Salmon & Shrimp  - For 4


1.  Prepare vegetables - Put each in an individual container until assembling:
My salad garden
(1)  Wash salad greens and spin. 
(2)  Grate 1 carrot. 
(3)  Chop 1 cucumber. 
(4)  Slice 2-3 green onions.

2.  Boil 3-4 eggs.  When cool, chop them up and put them in a container.

3.  Prepare blackened salmon - Look up your favorite blackened salmon recipe:
(1)  Rinse salmon
(2)  Sprinkle with blackened seasoning.
(3)  Brush flesh side with about 1 tablespoon of melted butter. When the pan is hot, place salmon flesh side down and let it cook for 2-5 minutes.
(4)  Brush skin side with butter and then flip and let it cook until the salmon flakes. (I put the lid on my pan to let it steam 1 1/2 minutes to finish the cooking.)
(5)  When it cools down, cut it into strips.


4.  Assemble Salads - Take out as many salad bowls as you need.
(1)  Fill each bowl with salad greens.
(2)  Arrange the vegetables in little piles in each bowl.
(3)  Arrange the salmon and shrimp.
(4)  Arrange the chopped eggs.
(5)  Put a bit of Gorgonzola or feta cheese in a pile.

Serve with ranch or green goddess dressing.

List of Other Salads on This Blog:

Greens/cabbage:
Make it Yourself Thai Peanut Dressing for Mandarin Salad  (My friend Judi's recipe)
KFC Copycat Cole Slaw   (A friend shared this with me)
Belizean Coleslaw    (From Internet search)
Antioxidant Rich Kale Super Salad  (A copycat from a deli, dressing from Syre School Cookbook)

Main Dish Salads
Gluten Free Chinese Chicken Cabbage Salad   (From my Heritage School Cookbook)
Baja Salad with Black Beans & Quinoa  (A remake from something I ate at a restaurant)
Mexican Grilled Salmon & Mango Salad   (From a Betty Crocker summer cookbook)
Jackson Square Shrimp Salad   (From my Syre School cookbook)

Pasta & Quinoa:
Tasty Gluten Free Pasta Salad  (Something I picked up over 20 years ago!)
Vietnamese Vermicelli Salad Bowls   (From an Internet search)
Michelle's Greek Quinoa Salad   (My foodie daughter's own delicious creation!)
 Another Great Salad with Quinoa - Janah's  Original Quinoa, Cranberry & Feta Salad  (a recipe my daughter came up with)

Vegetable:
Jeremy D's Sensational Greek Salad   (My son-in-law's recipe)
Grandma's Perfect Potato Salad   (Family recipe)
Rose's Refreshing Cucumber Salad   (From a Chinese friend)
A Great BBQ side Salad - Curried Pea Salad  (From my church cookbook, Come & Dine)
Dot's Easy Bean Salad  (Recipe from an  83 yr old friend of my father's)
A Great Summer Side - Broccoli Salad  (From my Come & Dine cookbook)

Fruit:
Grandma Marilyn's Frozen Fruit Salad  (My mother-in-law's recipe)




Sunday, August 12, 2018

What's the Focus of the Psalms?

      Who doesn’t love the Psalms?   I’ve turned to them many times for encouragement and comfort. I’ve always liked Psalms honesty; David and other writers told it like it was with any pretense.   But I learned as I started reading the Life-Study of the Psalms that not all of the Psalms are God’s sentiments; some are a mixture of some of the writer's  human concepts and views.
 
My daughter and children in Arizona
     In chapters 3 and 4 I found Witness Lee's explanation  about what was going on in the Psalms really helpful. These excerpts are   from page 41 and 44 of chapter 4:
 
“Suppose that we were the arrangers of the 150 psalms.  Which Psalm would we place as the first one? The Lord’s way is the best way.  He put Psalm 1 first where we see the law in man’s appreciation.  Then we see Christ in God’s economy in Psalm 2....David, who appreciated the law with its keeper in Psalm 1, murdered Uriah and robbed him of his wife (2 Samuel 11:14-27)....In his great sin, however, he broke all the last five commandments, which require men to have virtues expressing God's divine attributes. Did David, the one who wrote Psalm 1, keep the law? I do not believe that many readers of the Psalms ever thought about this. They agreed with David's exaltation of the law in Psalm 1. The greatest teacher in the New Testament, Paul told us that no flesh can be justified by keeping the law (Gal. 2:16; 3:11). It is impossible for fallen man to keep the law (Lee, Witness. Life-Study of the Psalms. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1993, Print).
 
      So instead of boasting in himself  or the law,  he said David should have been repenting. Because of his human concepts, not all of David’s sentiments were spot on.  David didn’t have the book of Romans and Galatians to explain to him that fallen mankind can't keep God’s law.  In Galatians 2:16 Paul says, "Knowing that man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ,...."  It was neat to learn that in the Psalms it's important  to see that Christ is the center and focus of the entire Bible not the law.
 

Wednesday, August 8, 2018

Jer's Authentic Pasta Aioli with Tomato, Basil and Mozzarella

 
When you have a son-in-law who's half Italian, you pay attention when they're cooking pasta!  In June we were invited over for dinner, and he was making Pasta Aioli with Tomatoes, Basil, and fresh mozzarella. Of course, he wasn't using gluten free pasta, but that's an easy adjustment to make! 
 
     I've made another one of his aioli recipes and you can see it below. It was so yummy;  I knew this one would be great, too.  When the bowls were served up, I could tell by the way everyone chowed down that it was fantastic!!
 
 
 Pasta Aioli with Tomato, Basil and  Mozzarella
 
 
1.  Prepare vegetables & cheese:
 (1)  Chop up one .66 oz. container of basil or pull some out of your herb garden like I usually do in the summer.
(2)  Quarter  1 cup of grape tomatoes.
(3)  Mince 6 cloves of garlic.
(4)  Cube  8 oz. of fresh mozzarella or more.
 
2. Prepare noodles: Cook 1 package of Trader Joe's brown rice penne pasta according to instructions. Try to cook it so that they're done just about when you're ready to mix in the aioli and vegetables. When done, drain and reserve 1/2 cup of the liquid or more for adding at the end if necessary.
 
3.  Meanwhile prepare the aioli - In a small saucepan put:
(1)  3/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil and warm up on medium high.
(2)  Stir in  the 6 cloves  of minced garlic and 1/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes if you like a bit of spicy heat. Then bring the heat down to a simmer.
(2)  Let it simmer for about 2 to 3 minutes being careful not to overcook the garlic so it doesn't burn and become bitter.
(3)   Jer said you can add  a bit of fresh basil--like half a tablespoon chopped up.
 
4. Assembling the pasta - Into the pan of pasta:
(1)  Then stir in the warmed oil and garlic.
(2)  Then stir in the vegetables and mozzarella
(3)   If the pasta needs it, add 1/2 cup of the pasta water.

.
Other Italian & Greek Pasta Recipes on This Blog:

Italian & Greek Chicken:
Incredible Gluten Free Chicken Souvlaki   (My son-in-law's marinade recipe)
Chicken Cacciatore with Peppers & Mushrooms  (My mother-in-law)
You've Got to Try This Gluten Free Chicken Parmesan!  (From my church cook book, Come & Dine)
My Son-in-Law's Own Recipe For Greek Chicken   (Family recipe)

Pasta Cassroles:
The Best Gluten Free Lasagna   (From my church Come & Dine cookbook)
Delicious Gluten Free Chicken Tetrazzini     (From my daughter-in-law's family cookbook)
Jan's Classic  Baked Spaghetti Casserole

 Classic Pastas:
My Mom's Splendiferous Gluten Free Spaghetti  (My mother's amazing sauce!)
Ginger's Family Favorite Gluten Free Beef Stroganof   (From my friend Ginger)
Gluten Free Pasta Aioli - Sausage & Vegetable Penne  (From my daughter and son-in-law)
Incredible Gluten Free Pasta Primavera     (Combination of two Internet searches)
Fantastic Gluten Free Salmon Fettucine 
Easy to Make Gluten Free Shrimp Linguini   (From my Syre School Cookbook)
Carmine's Authentic Italian Pasta Sauce  (From my son-in-law's father who was born in Italy)

Mac & Cheeses
Fantastic Gluten Free Macaroni & Cheese  (Modified from Heritage & Internet search)
Gluten Free Comfort Food - Downright Delicious Gluten Free Tuna Noodle Casserole  (From my Heritage School Cookbook)
Northwest Crab Mac & Cheese  - From a 5th grade friend's recipe project
Whidbey Island Crab & Noodle Bake - A classy crab mac & cheese recipe from my mother-in-law

Pizza
Judi's Gluten Free Crazy Crust Pizza -  Spinach, Artichoke & Feta Pizza (From a friend)

Soups:
This is the Best Minestrone Soup!  (From my son's Internet search and tweaking)
Mouth Watering Italian Turkey Sausage Soup   (This is  my friend Debbie's recipe)

Salads:
Tasty Gluten Free Pasta Salad   (I've been making this salad for over 20 years!)
Jeremy D's Sensational Greek Salad  (From my son-in-law who is half Italian)
Michelle's Greek Quinoa Salad   (My daughter came up with this way to use quinoa)