Simple IC Friendly Baked Oregano Chicken

By Miranda

This recipe is slightly adapted from one of my favorite meals that my mom used to make, and is now a favorite in my own home.

Simple IC Friendly Baked Oregano Chicken

Ingredients

2 organic boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Organic olive oil
Organic oregano
All natural minced garlic
Sea salt
Garlic pepper

Set the oven to preheat at 350°. Wash the chicken and place it on a prep plate. Brush with olive oil, then sprinkle with oregano, minced garlic, sea salt, and garlic pepper to taste.

Bake for 40-45 minutes on a non-stick pan, then broil for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and enjoy!

This chicken goes with a variety of delicious sides.

Pictured above, the chicken is accompanied by Columbia River Organics Gardener's Blend veggies and Alexia's Olive Oil, Rosemary & Garlic Oven Fries.

Pictured below you will find the same baked chicken with organic french green beans and a side of whole grain brown rice.

Sometimes simple is what's best!

A Big Old Pot of IC Friendly Soup

By Miranda

My husband is sick right now, so naturally he was craving soup for dinner tonight. I have yet to find even an organic canned or packaged soup that doesn't irritate my bladder, and while I could have just made him a can of his own, I decided to take on the challenge of making a big old pot of IC friendly soup that we could both enjoy and would last the next couple of days until he is well. I've actually never made homemade soup before, but it came out really good and it's been two hours and I don't have a flare, so I think I'm in clear!

IC Friendly Chicken Soup with Barley

Ingredients
2 boxes Pacific Natural Foods Organic Free Range Chicken Broth
3 celery stalks
1 large potato
1 bag frozen Columbia River Organics Harvest Trio (carrots, peas, and corn)
2 cups Mother's 100% Whole Grain Barley (cooked)
*You can use noodles or rice instead, but I've been on a barley kick lately
6 cloves garlic
Parsley
Sea Salt
Pepper
Garlic Salt

It was actually a pretty simple process. I started out cooking the barley with a pinch of salt for about 14 minutes. While it was cooking I chopped the celery and potato.

I took out a big old pot and sauteed the garlic cloves with some olive oil for a minute. Then I added the celery and carrots and sauteed for another minute. I poured in the chicken broth, sprinkled the parsley, salt, and pepper in, and left it simmering on medium heat for about 20 minutes.


After 20 minutes, I added the harvest mix (which I had already heated) and let it simmer for 4 more minutes. In the meantime, I heated up 2 whole wheat rolls for dipping. Then added the barley, let it sit for another 3 minutes, and it was ready to serve, after a quick taste-test and approval from Joey.




Mission accomplished.

Low Acid Honey Garlic Chicken

By Miranda

This is my husband, Joey:


Joey is a pretty typical American guy when it comes to food. He likes his meat & potatoes, he prefers chicken over chocolate, he would put hot sauce on everything if I didn't remind him it was a bad idea, and I am pretty certain he'd eat at Wendy's at least 5 times a week if he was still a bachelor. Despite all that, one of his very favorite meals is my IC Friendly Honey Garlic Chicken.

Joey and I had only been dating a few months when I got my first severe IC flare. Although it took awhile for me to be properly diagnosed, I was aware that I needed to be careful about what I was eating and I could tell that acidic food made everything feel much worse. I started changing my diet a little on my own right away, expecting that it was temporary and that I'd go back to my normal regiment once someone finally figured out what was wrong with me. Then, about 5 months later, I found a urogynecologist who put me on the IC diet within 5 minutes of meeting me. The permanence of the change obviously devastated me, and I know that it affected Joey immediately as well. Suddenly, we couldn't eat at many of the restaurants we had previously enjoyed, and he felt guilty eating anything that I could no longer have. "Get ready for a lifestyle change," is what the doctor said to me. She wasn't kidding.

I would estimate that it took at least a year for us to get used to the diet change. Now he has learned that it is okay for him to still enjoy foods that I can't have because it doesn't mean he is rubbing it in my face, and I have learned how to prepare meals that we can both enjoy. I know that if I asked him to, he would never eat another piece of chocolate and he would only eat tomato-based products when I wasn't around. But for me it was never about taking anything away from him; it was about learning to cope so we could both be happy. Sometimes this means preparing our dishes slightly differently, other times it just means adapting old recipes that we both liked so that they are safe for me. We used to get bummed out about food together all the time; now we get excited about eating and trying new recipes on a regular basis.

This dish, in particular, is a big hit on both ends.

Honey Garlic Chicken Stir Fry

First I get 1 cup of organic long grain brown rice cooking. The kind I use takes about an hour so I start with that.

For the 2 of us, I use:

1/2 cup rice
1 cup spring water
1-1/2 tsp. Olivio butter
1 tsp. organic garlic salt

I cook it all together, covered, for 50 minutes and then let it sit in the covered pot for another 10 minutes.

***

Next, I set the oven to 350° and get out my ingredients for the chicken:

8 organic boneless, skinless chicken tenderloin strips
3 tbsp. organic orange blossom honey
2 tsp. organic garlic powder
1 tsp. garlic pepper
1 tsp. sea salt
1/4 tsp. turmeric
Organic sesame seeds

First I cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces. I put all the ingredients in a Ziploc bag and shake them up.

I cover a pan with aluminum foil and spread the chicken out. Then I sprinkle the sesame seeds over the chicken. Finally, I drizzle it with a little more honey, just because I love honey oh so much.

I cook the chicken for about 40 minutes, monitoring it between 30-40 to make sure it doesn't overcook.

***

For the vegetables, I use:

1 bag Steamfresh frozen broccoli, carrots, sugar snap peas, & water chestnuts (no seasoning)

In my opinion, this is the best possible veggie option for this meal. I prefer to heat the veggies in a separate dish or on the stove and not in the plastic bag.

***

Bringing it all together:

I take a large skillet and heat a small amount of organic sesame oil to medium high (but I have to be careful because it gets hot fast and has potential to burn and ruin the night, trust me).

I add the other items to the oil, one at a time, starting with the vegetables, then the chicken, and finally the rice. I'll usually add a little more honey to the mix at this time, but that might be overkill for some!

I saute it all for a short time and then it's ready to be served and enjoyed by IC patients and regulars guys alike!

Culture Shock: The No-Acid Pasta Solution

By Miranda

I am Italian-American. I grew up eating pasta with tomato sauce at least twice a week. One Sunday a month, my mother would make a huge pot of sauce. I will never forget how the aroma of the sauce cooking would make it's way through the house and wake me up or the midday meatballs my sister and I would steal from the pot and eat together on the couch. We'd have pasta with garlic bread for dinner that night, leftovers the next, and freeze the rest to use throughout the month.

This was such a fond part of my childhood and adolescence that I find myself automatically craving spaghetti with sauce on Sunday's, even though it's been almost three years since I have even tasted tomato sauce. Next to chocolate, tomatoes were the most difficult to give up when I first went on the IC diet. Unfortunately, they were also the most necessary to give up because of their acidity. One day, I am going to grow my own low acid tomatoes and maybe make some sauce, but until that day comes, I have had to go without.

When I was first faced with the IC diet, I actually didn't want to eat pasta at all because I found it too depressing and pasta without sauce seemed sacrilegious! Now I am finally able to enjoy Sunday evening pasta dinners with my husband because I have found that eating pasta without tomato sauce is better than no pasta at all. I can't say that I've found the perfect solution for this craving (I am not sure one exists) but over time, I have learned to appreciate pasta prepared a few different ways, and luckily for me, I can still eat garlic bread!

The following recipe is only semi-homemade, as many of my recipes are. Three years ago I wouldn't have dreamed of heating anything that would go on pasta from a jar, but when I am too exhausted or all flared up, I am now willing to make things easier on myself. For me, that is one of the lessons I have learned from living with chronic pain; I am constantly figuring out how to cope and adapt to situations as they present themselves and cooking has been on the top of that list.

PESTO-ALFREDO PASTA

2 cups prepared organic whole wheat pasta

1/2 cup Gia Russa Alfredo sauce

1 tbsp homemade pesto (made by Jaclyn)
*Beware store bought pesto--it often contains citric acid!

I just boil the pasta for about 10 minutes and drain it. Then heat the Alfredo and pesto together until warm and toss it with the pasta. It's an incredibly easy, and extremely tasty Sunday evening Italian treat!

**If I am feeling up to it, I will add a little Parmesan on top, but Parmesan is not always IC friendly, so be careful. Alfredo is also not safe for everyone, but I have found that this particular brand works for me.