Well, it’s official – I’m allergic to gluten. The funny thing is, instead of being upset about cutting sourdough and white pasta out of my diet – I’m more inspired. The whole “GF” label is something that I never really paid any attention to and I never realized just how many gluten-free and gluten-aware there out there. There is a TON – and a lot of restaurants are able to cater to gluten-sensitive people.

Once I got my results back, I knew I needed to make a change in my diet to start feeling better and immediately hit the grocery store. Luckily for me, Nick was more than happy to embark upon this journey with me – aside from the fact that he will never give up his beloved flour tortillas, which I totally understand.  We had just decided that we were going to start eating healthier and working out more, and this diet change only encourages a healthier lifestyle – not to mention that bathing suit season comes around much earlier in AZ than it does in any other state. Haha.

I decided to do a gluten-free take on a Women’s Health recipe that was included in my “flat belly recipes” email.

Tempeh Taco Salad

The ingredients

4 strips of tempeh (Nick had hot sauce marinated chicken)
1/4 cup black beans
2 Tbsp salsa
1 1/2 cups chopped romaine lettuce
1/4 cup chopped yellow peppers
1/4 cup corn salsa (I used this Chipotle inspired recipe)
1/4 cup chopped tomatoes
2 Tbsp guacamole
1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Juice from one lime

The method:

1. Heat a frying over medium heat. Add the tempeh and cook until crisp (about 3 minutes on each side). This is also the time that Nick fired up the grilled and made his chicken.
2. Add the lime juice, black beans, corn salsa, yellow peppers, tomatoes and romaine lettuce in a giant bowl and toss together.
3. Top salad mixture with guacamole, salsa and tempeh (or chicken) and serve.