Queen of Nuts

“Queen of Nuts” (c) 2012 Colleayn T. Klaibourne

Watercolor and ink

Doodle before it was painted

The leaves are starting to turn into beautiful reds, golds, & rusts and fall is right around the corner.  This is the time of year for harvest and is also time for our squirrel’s to go crazy for nuts!  I couldn’t help but laugh as a little squirrel went running by with two large green walnuts hanging out each side of his cheek.  Up the tree, down the tree, race around the yard – that is what makes up our manic squirrel’s day. Each day is about finding that golden nut and magical hiding space to enjoy during that long winter. The squirrel in me likes to gather art supplies, pens, paper, sparkly glitter and more as I prepare for a long Minnesota winter.This drawing is of one of my busy squirrels.  As I began drawing and painting her, it kept getting more and more complex- which fits these rascals very well.

The Bragg Liquid Aminos is one of my favorite finds to replace soy sauce.  It is gluten free and delicious!  This is new to so many of my family, friends, and clients that I wanted to introduce it to people who haven’t tried it yet.  It is full of good things for your body and great in many dishes.
After watching our goofy squirrel’s loving their delicious treats, I thought they would be great inspiration for another favorite recipe of mine- Cashew Chicken.  If the squirrel’s had their way, they would have a nice stash of cashews, but they can’t figure out that bird feeder.  Instead, you can enjoy this recipe for these busy little guys and stash this away into your recipe collection.  This is gluten free, dairy & fructose intolerance friendly, and delicious.

Colleáyn’s Cashew Chicken

Ingredients

2 Chicken breasts, cubed

1-2 Tbsp. Olive Oil

1 cup basmati rice cooked in 2 cups water

Roasted salted cashews

1 ½ Tbsp. dextrose

2 ½ tsp. cornstarch

1 tsp. salt

¼ tsp. garlic salt

Wet Ingredients½ cup + 1 Tbsp. water

2 Tbsp. Bragg Liquid Aminos

1 tsp. toasted sesame oil

½ tsp. regular sesame oil

*     Cut chicken breasts into cubes with a kitchen scissors

*     Start cooking basmati rice according to package instructions. *     While rice is cooking, fry the cubes of chicken in the olive oil.

*     I like to put the dry ingredients in one bowl and the wet ingredients in a large bowl, then combine together.

*     When chicken is done, pour the sauce over the chicken and simmer on low until it thickens to a nice sauce.  Stir constantly.  This only takes a few minutes.

*     Serve the chicken and sauce on top of the rice

*     Sprinkle with cashews and enjoy!

*     Feel free to modify the salt and Bragg Liquid Aminos to your taste.  I am on a high salt diet, so feel free to cut this back if needed.  The Bragg Liquid Aminos is salt free and gives a great burst of flavor.

Excellent!Have this often!