Welcome to Foodie Fridays, a new blog series focusing on eating–both at home and at local restaurants.

A few years ago, after suffering from stomach issues since I was a young child, I made the decision to go gluten free and I haven’t looked back since. Removing gluten from my diet completely changed my life and all but eliminated my stomach issues. It hasn’t been easy and I may have had a few grocery store, “I’m going to starve” breakdowns, but it has certainly been worth it. As a result, not only are my stomach issues gone, but I’ve become somewhat of a whiz in the kitchen, taking normal recipes and making them gluten free. I’m also that girl that checks restaurant menus for gluten free options before even entering in the door. I sometimes get that server who has an attitude, thinking I’m in it for the weight loss (I actually gained weight after eliminating gluten), but that’s fine. I’ll take your attitude to avoid a stomach ache. Then, there’s the servers and kitchen staff members I love, who use new gloves and prep ware and I just want to kiss them!

At any rate, going gluten free has led me to cook more recipes at home. As an interesting by-product, I also no longer consume fried food (save for the occasional Chick-fil-A waffle fries) and generally just eat better, consuming more whole foods and less processed junk.

One of my favorite things to eat are Philly Cheesesteaks, and for the longest time, I couldn’t have one. A Philly Cheesesteak without the bun just isn’t the same. However, I recently found  an amazing recipe courtesy of The Aussie and The Owl and with some slight modifications, was able to make it gluten free. Here’s the recipe with my modifications in red:

Ingredients:
6 French Rolls (Schar makes these amazingly soft baguettes. They come in a two pack, but are super long so I cut them in half to make four.) 
1 C mayo (I always use Hellman’s Light Mayo.)
2 cloves garlic, minced (I very rarely have garlic cloves and typically substitute with either garlic powder or garlic salt. In this case, I used garlic salt. One teaspoon of garlic salt equals two cloves of garlic.)
1-3 lbs Thin Sliced Carne Asada (I purchased shaved beef steak from the grocery store.)
2C frozen bell pepper strips (I skipped these, but if I hadn’t I would have used fresh peppers.)
1 medium onion cut into 1/4″ rings
1 tsp Montreal Steak Seasoning
1/2 tsp Garlic Salt
3 TBS Worchestershire Sauce (I used Heinz Worcestershire which is gluten free)
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tsp beef bullion (I used Better than Bouillon) 
2C shredded cheese (I used sliced provolone)

Directions:
1.  Combine mayo and garlic in an airtight container, stir.  Cover and refrigerate until you are ready to use (at least 1 hour). (Definitely was a slacker and made this right before using it.)
2.  In crockpot place carne asada, onions and seasonings.  Cook on high four hours (until beef easily falls apart when pulled with a fork).
To Make Sandwiches:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees
Split a roll lengthwise.  Spread a generous TBS of garlic mayo on both sides of cut bread, add beef, onions and cheese.  Close sandwich and wrap tightly with foil.  Bake at 450 for 15 minutes until cheese is melted and bread is crisp on the outside.

Super easy and super tasty! I paired these up with baked french fries for an easy weeknight dinner. You could also make them in smaller sizes for a party since the assembly and execution is so simple. Below are a few photos. Ignore their less than stellar cell phone quality.

If you want to check out some older recipe posts, visit my Baking With Buddy page!