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There’s just no time!!

Okay, so between end-of-the-year celebrations/activities, swim team practice every afternoon, and then add in my busy time of year with the photography business, oh and recovering from some light surgery last Monday, having time to cook dinner has been, well, tricky to say the least.  Hence, this post…

For years, I’ve wanted to find a good enchilada sauce to cook with and just haven’t been able to find one that doesn’t include corn starch, gluten, or some other nasty ingredients. Now for those who live west coast, a lot of the paleo folks use El Pato sauce.  But unfortunately, we don’t have it available to us here in the south and I’m not willing to pay the shipping on something like this.  So, I’ve just done without, until recently…

So my friend Daphne introduced me to an enchilada sauce by Frontera from Fresh Market. I have to say, for a gluten-free sauce, with fairly low ingredients, this passed my test, and it also passed my kid’s taste test. And talk about easy!  Just what I needed this week.

Pre-made grilled chicken (thanks Scott!) really does make life so much easier!

I just used grilled chicken, sauce, some cheese, and heated it.  Really, could this be any easier?  I do think next time though, I would love to add some sauteed onions, or minced sweet peppers to it to mix it up a little and get some of those extra vitamins. I just love how red sauce can hide, or at least camouflage most veggies so I need to take advantage with this sauce.

How fun is this plate for the kids? It actually works even better with things like cauliflower mash. Thanks again sweet Cherri!!

On a side note, I have had some people ask me about cheeses since they are not considered paleo. Cheese along with a paleo diet (meat, fish, eggs, vegetables, fruit and nuts) is actually considered a Primal diet. Mark Sisson has a great blog that covers many interesting topics and the topic of cheese is one of them.  So, maybe that’s a way to rationalize it some, but I think it’s all based on each individual and what works best for your body.  Honestly, I never thought I had dairy issues.  Turns out, consuming processed (pasteurized) cows milk was keeping me ill a few years back with ulceratice colitis.  Since quitting (plus cleaning up my diet), I’ve been symptom free for years.

So with that said, I will use some parmasean sparingly, made from raw cow’s milk (Trader Joe’s has my favorite). I will also use a little goat cheese here and there.  Since both are digested more easily (the raw cow’s milk, and the goat’s milk) I am able to tolerate it occasionally.  The only way to really test your body’s reaction is by elimination.  I probably went a year or two without any (6 weeks would suffice under normal circumstances), but this past year, I’ve added some back in to my diet  and so far, so good.  But, of course, you have to decide (and figure out) what works best for you!

Thanks for reading and have a good week!

  • Michelle - I actually bought some yesterday at the Fresh Market in my town. Can’t wait to try it out.ReplyCancel

    • landriav - Oh how funny Michelle! I hope you like it. I think it was actually better for leftovers but we really liked it both days. I would maybe add a touch of cumin to it next time, but either way, it was really nice to have around for such a quick and simple meal!ReplyCancel

  • Daphne - I made these on Saturday night with corn tortillas and a filling of shredded chicken, diced zucchini, red peppers and onions, fresh salsa, a touch of cream cheese (not at all paleo), and cumin. My kids DEVOURED the meal and the babysitter said that they were the BEST enchiladas she’d ever eaten. Pretty good stamp of approval. and the best part is that it took less than 30 minutes (excluding the time it took to cook the chicken in advance). I poured the sauce over the enchiladas and baked at 350 for 15 minutes. Matt and I had leftovers on Sunday with a mache and avocado salad.ReplyCancel

    • landriav - YUM!! Now that sounds delicious!!! Will try that next time for sure.ReplyCancel

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