Did you know that May is Celiac Awareness Month
?
Celiac disease is a medical condition that affects an estimated 1 in 133 Canadians. But this begs the question for many of us, 'what is Celiac Disease'?
What is Celiac Disease?
As per the Canadian Celiac Association , Celiac disease is defined as...
"... a medical condition in which the absorptive surface of the small intestine is damaged by a substance called gluten. This results in an inability of the body to absorb nutrients: protein, fat, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals, which are necessary for good health."
What is Gluten?
Gluten is a protein found in wheat, rye, triticale, barley. In the case of wheat, gliadin has been isolated as the toxic fraction. It is the gluten in the flour that helps bread and other baked goods bind and prevents crumbling. This feature has made gluten widely used in the production of many processed and packaged foods.
Gluten is found in many, many of today's processed products and sauces. Knowing what to look for can be challenging. Here's an awesome fact sheet to help you with knowing what to look for when shopping.
Our Paleo Lifestyle and a Gluten-free twist on a classic Chicken.ca Recipe
My family and me (kids too) try to eat a Paleo-like diet. This diet is largely composed of meat, nuts, vegetables and berries. If followed strictly it would be wheat-free and because of that, gluten-free too. For us, there's a number of reasons why we choose to lead this kind of lifestyle, but that's a whole post in itself. Instead, we celebrated Celiac Awareness Month by preparing a Chicken.ca Gluten free recipe.
We opted to prepare a gluten-free version of Angel Hair Pasta with Chicken and Vegetables. The full recipe and instructions are listed here , note we substituted in gluten-free noodles, tomato & basil pasta sauce, pan-fried using coconut oil and chopped garlic.
What would you change if you made this dish your own?
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Don't Forget to Enter the Great Canadian #ChickenChallenge
Last month I told you all about the Great Canadian #ChickenChallenge... did you enter yet? Get on it! Entry is easy like shake-and-bake!
All you have to do is get your creative juices flowing and submit a unique recipe using the following 4 required ingredients:
- Chicken thighs ( boneless or bone-in / skinless or skin-on ),
- Ginger-ale ( Canadian ginger-ale ),
- Quinoa
- Mango
Don't stress about a photo as they are optional and not required. (however, I'd love to see them!)
This contest is open to Canadian residents who are the age of majority in the province or territory of residence at time of entry.
To enter visit Chicken Farmers of Canada on Facebook - and good luck!
PS - be sure to connect with Canadian Chicken on Facebook and get on the conversations on Twitter at @ChickenFarmers.
[box type="info" align="alignright" ] Disclosure: I am participating in the Chicken Farmers of Canada campaign managed by SJ Consulting. I received compensation in exchange for my participation in this campaign. The opinions on this blog are my own. [/box]
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This is my disclaimer, “Just so you know, I have been compensated to share my ideas on this topic. Sometimes it is in the form of products, or services or even money… But here’s the thing; I won’t share anything with you that I don’t fully support. It doesn't matter what it is, or how much they are willing to give me, if I don’t believe in it, It won’t be on my site. Seriously. You’ll just have to trust me on this.”
~ Moose
