The Guilty Pleasures of Home

I went to Tampa for Gasparilla; which is a HUGE parade along Bayshore to commemorate the invasion of pirates! Not only is it a commemoration of that event, which allegedly occurred many years ago, but it provides an opportunity for the city of Tampa to drink freely on the streets.

Arriving on Thursday night, I spent Friday morning visiting my favorite dentist. I admit that I am not the best patient, but I only had to get a cleaning, so it was pretty painless... However, I went without eating breakfast (BIG NO-NO!), and I was STARVING by the time that I actually left (at 1pm). I ventured with Cowboy and Grandma Gusta (she absolutely refuses to eat out because she would rather eat her own tuna fish. At 90 years old, who am I to change her?!)to our favorite breakfast spot on Tampa, First Watch. First of all, I was a little bummed that my salad did not come with avocado as promised. :( However, I was even more disappointed that my chicken was dry. Ok, ok, I seem to complain alot, but I LOVE the dressing. Sadly, I realized that the honey dijon dressing probably has wheat as a thickening agent, so I typically order the EVOO (extra-virgin olive oil)- which it is called according to Rachael Ray. On a side note, Hellman's Mayonnaise is gluten-free, so maybe I should have eaten at Grandma's house.

That night, Mom made amazing spaghetti and meatballs, and I really LOVED the sauce that she made. Something about a good homecooked meal... It is so funny to think that my mother used to be the queen of leftovers, scarring me for many years. By that I mean that she used to take leftover chicken and meats, add diluted tomato sauce, olives and pasta to create her staple dish. If you are wondering how one dilutes tomato sauce, you only use half of the can and fill the other half with water; a successful way to cut sodium AND flavor. I will say that I still love mom's food, and it has REALLY improved since I became gluten free. Perhaps she feels bad for serving me tuna on wheat bread for all of those years. :)

Making gluten free modifications is boring at times and very hard to do, as the sauces usually smell so good that my mouth salivates simply thinking about them. The moral of this story, you need to substitute dressings and sauces with EVOO or have your very loving mother make you delicious food (from scratch). Guilt works wonders... ;)