Make It Allergy Free

Chipotle Chicken Soup

Yes, lately I have been on a Chipotle kick. I love that smoky flavor that complements many different foods. This is a recipe I featured in the Local Joe last week. It’s super easy and can be adjusted to fit your own spice level. Chipotle chiles are packed full of flavor, so you only need a little bit to create lots of flavor. If you are a spice wimp, you may want to decrease to only one pepper and scrape the seeds out before chopping. Have it as plain soup without chips and avocado or turn it into awesome tortilla soup with tortilla chips, avocado and cheese, if desired. Works great for a crowd too. Just make a big batch of soup and let guests add their own chips and desired fixings. To make this recipe even easier, use meat from a precooked rotisserie chicken. I hope you enjoy it.

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped, green may also be used if you can’t find red
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 2 to 3 cups cooked chicken, shredded or chopped small
• 1 small jar picante sauce, 8 oz size
• 2 chipotle chile peppers in adobo sauce, chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 tbsp lime juice
• Tortilla chips and sliced avocado for serving, if desired

Directions

Heat oil in dutch oven or large pot over medium high heat. Cook pepper in oil until browned and softened. Reduce heat and add broth, chicken, picante sauce and chipotle pepper. Bring up to a simmer and cook until chicken is thoroughly heated and flavors have blended. Remove from heat and add cilantro and lime juice.

Ladle soup into bowls over tortilla chips and top with avocado slices for serving. May also be topped with a little cheese as well. Try cheddar or monterey jack cheese for a great flavor combination.

Note: If you have food allergies to corn, you can use baked flour tortillas strips or brown rice tortillas strips. You can also leave the tortillas out altogether. It’s still very tasty as is.

© Copyright 2012, Michaela C. Jones. Please do not copy, reprint or repost without permission. Get printer friendly  version here.

Did you know that people who have difficulty recovering from physical illness have often adopted negative beliefs about their recovery? They may perceive themselves as helpless, hopeless or worthless, and make statements like, “I can’t get healthy,” or “There is no hope for me.”

Studies have shown that identity can be a major component of the way people deal with their health conditions, particularly those with a chronic disease or condition. Too often people tend to identify directly with their illness. Instead of saying, “I am Sarah and I have Celiac Disease.” Sarah says “I’m a Celiac.” The disease moves in and actually shifts a person’s identity. They are no longer a person, but a manifestation of the disease. However, there is hope.

Studies have also shown that if a person can separate his or her negative or false identification, regain their real identity and remove their limiting beliefs, their overall health can greatly benefit.

So the question is, are you a person with a condition, or are you the condition? The choice is yours. If you can change your mind and attitude, you can change your health. Don’t let limiting beliefs keep you down. Overcome it!

Easy Chipotle Chicken Tacos

Do you like flavorful food? Has allergy-free become synonymous with bland for you? Then you have to try these super easy, very tasty tacos. Check out my guest post on Thriving with Celiac for the recipe. This recipe works very well with the allergy friendly tortillas that can be found in my book, Make It Allergy Free, or use your own favorite.

Get the printer friendly version here.

No-Bake Granola Bars

This is one of my family’s favorite recipes. The original recipe can be found in my second book, Make It Allergy Free Too. These bars are great as a snack or treat. Make them with or without the chocolate drizzle on top or mix up the flavorings to your liking.

Ingredients:

• 3 cups plain granola
• 1 cup crispy rice cereal
• 1/4 cup sunflower kernels
• 1/4 cup raisins, dried fruit or chocolate chips
• 3/4 cup brown rice syrup or raw honey
• 1/2 cup sunbutter
• 1 tsp cinnamon, optional
• 1 tsp vanilla, optional
• pinch of sea salt

Glaze:

• 1 cup allergy friendly chocolate chips
• 1/4 tsp grapeseed oil

Directions:

In a large bowl combine granola, cereal, sunflower kernels and raisins. In a sauce pan heat syrup, sunbutter and salt. Heat and stir until smooth and pourable. Remove from heat. Stir in cinnamon and vanilla if using. Pour syrup mixture over granola and stir with wooden spoon or spatula until granola is evenly coated. Turn mixture into a 9×13 or large brownie pan and press evenly into the pan using spoon or lightly dampened fingers. (For easy removal, you may line pan with non-stick foil first.)

For glaze, melt chips and oil together in microwave using short bursts or small sauce pan on stovetop. Be careful not to scorch. Stir thoroughly. Drizzle or pour over granola. Let bars cool completely in pan on wire rack. Cut to desired size.

Note: You may also just use 4 1/2 cups of favorite prepared granola for this recipe.

Recipe ©2012 Michaela C. Jones. Get a printer friendly version here.

Did you know that often a person can become addicted to the very food that produces an allergic response from them? This is called allergic addiction syndrome. When a person stops eating food they are allergic to which their body has become “addicted,” they can experience unpleasant withdrawal symptoms, such as headache, fatigue and anxiety. Eating more of the food can actually improve the situation by suppressing the withdrawal symptoms, but this can become an unhealthy cycle of addiction that can lead to even more health problems. Allergy experts call this suppression of symptoms by allergenic food masking because it masks the true allergic symptoms. This explains why a lot of people have a hard time eliminating food from their diet to which they have been found to be allergic.

Have you experienced allergic addiction syndrome?