What better way to kick of the New Year than to write about food?
First, I've come to the grips that I am not only gluten intolerant, but it seems I have an allergy to wheat as well. I'm not going to bother going to a doctor just to tell me either what I already know, or to try to convince me it is all in my head. I eat wheat, I feel like crap. I don't eat wheat, I don't feel like crap. It is that simple.
The problem with wheat is it is in practically EVERYTHING pre-made. This means I have to cook a lot more. While that is ultimately a better thing, it can be frustrating at times to try to make favorites only to discover the difficulty in using wheat-free products.
My husband wanted chicken pot pie for dinner for our traditional New Year's Eve "hide from the world." I had the double challenge of hunting down a recipe for chicken pot pie (thank you, internet!), and finding a way to make an acceptable crust.
The first part of the hunt involved finding the recipe from Simply Scratch, which you can find here. Individual chicken pot pies, made from scratch, no cream of chicken soup (which usually contains WHEAT!!), and a link to a pie crust recipe.
When shopping for the ingredients, I found that Namaste Foods now has a product called Perfect Flour Blend. I've had desserts made from their spice cake and brownie mixes before, and both of those are so awesome you don't miss the wheat, dairy, etc.
The chicken pot pie turned out great! I have a few observations.
1. There is an obscene amount of butter in the pie crust recipe. This is not something you would want to make on a weekly basis unless you have the metabolism of a hummingbird. It is delicious, and it would work well in a dessert pie as well as a savory one. I may try to find a pie crust recipe that is a little friendlier to the waistline next time, as long as I can find one that still does the filling justice.
2. This is not a recipe to make when you are pressed for time. Takes a long time to make, but well worth the effort. Maybe next time I make this I'll be more streamlined in my approach, but it will still be a lot of time in the kitchen.
3. The Namaste flour, worked great for the crust recipe instead of wheat flour, but it falls apart a lot easier since it doesn't have the binding gluten of wheat. I've seen recipes that compensate for that by using a bit of xanthan gum. I may try that next time.
Happy New Year everybody!
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