Tennessee Sounds Good to Me!

Friday morning, I will be off to Tennessee with my mother. My grandfather's house still has not sold. Ugh! So, I'm giving my mother some company and well deserved help to check on the house and give it a good cleaning. As suggested by many friends and because I am a bit supersticious, we also plan on burrying a Saint Joseph in the front lawn with Joseph facing the house near the for sale sign.

My mother is a faithful disciple of the "low-carb" diet. I have cut gluten out of my diet for health reasons. Since there isn't a whole lot of variety as far as restaurants go, I have planned a little menu to make life a little easier. The way I see it is it's like we're staying at a cottage. We have most of the ammenities we need to run a kitchen. We have a grill. Everything else I am packing away to execute my menu.

The contents of the box includes a cutting board, a small but mighty knife set, a spatula, scilcone spoon, plastic bags, dishwasher soap tabs, mixing bowls, plastic containers, my handy-dandy juicer box complete with innerchangeable graters, paper towels, toilette paper, napkins, silverware, and paper plates and bowls.

On the menu for dinners: Night one we will dine on chili rubbed chicken tacos with lime-cilantro slaw, night two will be steak with a grilled vegetable salad, and night three we will have a lovely rainbow salad. As far as breakfasts I figure I know my mom eats a protein power meal including eggs. I usually am happy with about anything and fruit. For lunches, I know we will be happy with leftovers.

I've made the salad dressings and chili rub ahead of time. I also plan on packing a cooler for the produce and other groceries we will need. I know you might be thinking, "Who in the h-e-double hockey sticks has time to do all that?" Normally, I wouldn't; however, it is summer vacation for me a.k.a. the glory of being a teacher with a summer off:)

In case you like to make your own salad dressings, I've included the ingredients below. Both are vinegrettes that pair well with about any salad. I am not including brand names, but as a newly gluten-free girl, I did check the ingredients and none listed MSG, wheat, or any other crazy name for gluten. The lighter colored salad dressing is for the grilled veggie salad. It's contents includes 1/4 cup olive oil, the juice of one lemon, 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar, 1 tablespoon dijon mustard, 1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce, 1/2 teaspoon chili paste, 1 clove pressed garlic, salt, and pepper.

The darker colored dressing is a sweeter dressing for the rainbow salad. It includes 1/4 cup olive oil, 4 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, 1 tablespoon dijon mustard, 1 tablespoon honey, 1 tablespoon finely minced shallot, salt, and pepper.

The spice rub for the chicken tacos is made from 1 teaspoon chili powder, 1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic, 1/2 teaspoon cumin, salt, and pepper.

We will have internet until Monday. Since I will have plenty of time on my hands, you can look forward to more recipes and the shinanagens that will unfold!