The Reluctant Hippie Family

A season for everything

2011-09-23T12:48:00.000-07:00

I am closing up this blog. It has been forever since I've written anything anyway and mostly because coming back to this blog feels like a life long past.

I do enjoy the process of writing and keeping memories so I will be starting a new blog at TheNewHippieFamily.blogspot.com

At this new blog I hope to share more of the daily mundane but incredible moments that I embrace and hope to remember.

Thanks for being along for the ride in this season.

Banana Bread

2011-02-02T19:53:00.000-08:00

I actually made this recipe up myself. That is an unheard of feat for me. When I was in high school I was making a batch of brownies from a box and after I read "mix by hand" I actually stuck my hand in the batter and stirred it around.

That is my cooking background.

Yes, I've come a long way.

This recipe calls from 1 tsp of honey but I think it would be fine without it as long as your bananas are very, very ripe. It is made without eggs.

Banana Bread

Ingredients

2 cups blanched almond flour

1/4 cup coconut flour

5 very ripe bananas

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. honey

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. vanilla

1/4 cup coconut oil (soft) or ghee (soft)

1 tsp. cinnamon

Method

whisk all dry ingredients together

blend all wet ingredients together

blend dry ingredients into wet

Pour into loaf pan greased with ghee or coconut oil

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes

then turn down to 300 and cook until mostly firm in the middle (it never firms up completely)

Almond Crackers

2011-02-02T19:27:00.000-08:00

I realized today that many of the recipes we use as staples in our house are not listed on my blog. This one we could not live without. We could also not live without Katie Kemper who makes us a huge batch every month that we keep in the freezer. Thank you Katie!!!!!

Almond Crackers
from Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride's GAPS book

2 Tbsp of butter (or ghee, coconut oil or lard)
2 cups ground nuts (almonds, hazels, walnuts, etc) (we use Trader Joe's Almond Meal)
2-3 Tbsp of water

You can improvise by adding to this mixture herbs, cinnamon, paprika, cayenne pepper, black pepper, salt, grated cheddar cheese (if tolerated) or peanut butter.

Mix the ingredients well. Roll out thinly on a board, sprinkled with some ground nuts. Cut into squares or any other shapes. Sprinkle some coarse salt, poppy seeds, caraway seeds or coriander seeds on top.

Bake in the oven on well-greased baking paper at 300F for 10-15 min.

These have a hard time staying together but do a little better if you keep them in the freezer.

Carrot Latkes

2011-01-11T06:43:00.000-08:00

Snow day today!!!! I LOVE snow days. I love waking up and telling Tyler he can stay home from school. I love the laziness of a day that is also magical. I took advantage of the extra time and made some carrot latkes for breakfast this morning. They really don't take that much time and they're very worth it. They have the taste of hashbrowns with a touch of sweetness from the carrots.

Carrot Scallion Latkes
Ingredients
3 cups shredded carrots
3 scallions, finely chopped (I've also done 1/2 medium onion)
3 eggs, whisked
1-2 teaspoon celtic sea salt
½ teaspoon coconut flour
olive oil or bacon fat for frying
Method
In a large bowl combine carrots, scallions and eggs
Stir salt and coconut flour into carrot mixture
In a large skillet heat oil
Scoop large tablespoonfuls of batter onto skillet
Fry patties on each side over medium heat until browned and crispy
Transfer latkes to a paper towel lined plate
Repeat process until all of the batter is used up

Pumpkin Muffins with Streusel Topping

2011-01-06T05:58:00.000-08:00

I know I am horrible at keeping up with this blog. It still works as a great place for organizing my stuff. So at least its working for me :-).

I've actually created some of my own recipes lately. Which is pretty amazing if you knew me. This is one I just made adaptations to a few recipes from other blogs. I served it last night to friends and, except for the fact that I over cooked them, they were a hit. This is a great treat for any one on or off GAPS. By using almond flour instead of traditional flour this treat is full of protein instead of just adding to our already starch filled diet.

The main idea is from Elana's pantry and the struesel topping comes from the Nourishing Gourmet. I'm sure this could easily be adapted to muffins.

Pumpkin Bars
1 cup pumpkin (acorn, butternut or other squash) puree
½-1 cup honey
4 eggs
2 cup blanched almond flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cloves

Streusel Topping
3 tablespoons of arrowroot powder, (not GAPS legal)
3 tablespoons of coconut crystals
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
dash of salt
3 tablespoons of cold coconut oil
1/3 cup of chopped walnuts

In a food processor, combine pumpkin, honey and eggs and pulse for 2 minutes
Pulse dry ingredients into wet for a full minute, until well combined
Pour batter into a greased 8 X 8 (greased with ghee or coconut oil)
Mix together first four Streusel ingredients. Then cut in coconut oil with a fork until small clumps are formed. Then stir in chopped walnuts.
Pour topping on top of bars
Bake at 350° for 30-35 minutes

Being instead of doing

2010-10-21T19:26:00.000-07:00

So the visit this week with the specialist was not what I expected. It reminded me why we decided to stop going down the traditional medical road. What the doctor said was, in a sense, what I wanted to hear...I do not need to worry about Grayson's diarrhea, I don't need to worry about his huge bloated belly, I don't need to worry about undigested food in his BMs, and I should feed him everything. The problem is he said this without putting a hand on Grayson, not looking at him for more than 2 seconds, not letting me finish a sentence, not reading Gray's medical history, and telling me that he will have Irritable Bowel Syndrome his whole life. He rolled his eyes at the idea of an imbalance in the gut flora theory. He said that what we eat makes no difference in our digestive system. He said I myself do not have lactose intolerance because I am of German heritage. There were many gross generalizations made and seemingly unfounded conclusions.

But I don't want to discount that he is a well respected doctor and at 78 years old, has to have much wisdom. He said that Gray does not have any of "their diseases." I believe that, and I'm thankful we went to see him to hear that and I can now remove that nagging thought in the back of my head that he has some chromosomal disorder going on. Going through Gray's medical history was helpful for me to realize how many things have improved.

He doesn't have a disease but is he in optimal health? I don't know. When you go out of the traditional medical model there is much talk about optimal health. That is the driving force behind most diet and nutrition gurus. There is even a sense that if you do everything right (i.e. perfect diet, correct supplements, all toxic avoidance) you can have perfect health. It can be a crazy trap for someone like me who wants to do everything right. I have had to step back many times and remind myself that we are in a fallen world. Things in this world are broken. Many things are beautiful but nothing is perfect. We have the promise that God will restore the world and our bodies back to perfection. But its a promise of things to come, not what we will experience on this earth.

My kids are not perfect. I can not make them perfect. I can not be the perfect mother. There is a not a perfect discipline tactic that if I follow perfectly will produce well behaved children. There is a not a perfect set of activities that if I complete in a week will make my children smart. There is not a perfect way to teach my children about the Bible or memorize versus that will ensure they feel loved by God and love others. AND...there is not a perfect diet or program or medicine that will ensure my children never get sick or never experience pain.

When I got home from the doctor's visit, I had a wonderful talk with Brian. It was mostly about the things I've just been talking about. I realize there is a part of my heart that is seeking to control things I can't control because it gives me a sense of security. But it is a false sense of security. I am going to drive myself crazy and I'm going to miss out on enjoying these years with my kids if I try to find my security in "fixing" them.

Yet, I am their mom, and I can't ignore issues if they are there. Balance. That is what I am trying to find. How to move forward when I think I need to to care for them, while at the same time resting in knowing that they are more than cared for by God.

Being instead of doing.

I don't have a master plan for where to go from here and I like that. We are already at the stage in our diet when we can start to add in some more foods so we'll slowly start to work our way into more and more variety. For the most part, my kids are doing great and I am going to choose to focus on their awesomeness. I am going to drink more water during the day...not because I am "supposed to" but because it is relaxing and it makes me slow down. I am going to sit still more. I am going to try to find a hobby. I am going to delete all 1200 unread emails in my inbox and not worry about trying to get to them all. I am going to try to think about just today. I am going to be a mom to my babies. I am going to enjoy my husband. I am going to rest.

We have a God who offers to take our burdens, I might as well take advantage of that.

"The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is thy faithfulness" Lamentations 3:22-23

On the Road Again

2010-10-18T19:56:00.000-07:00

I take Grayson to see a specialist tomorrow at the Diagnostic Clinic at Children's Hospital. It was recommended that we take Gray to see this "jack of all trades" about a year and half ago by our ENT and then confirmed by the GI specialist. The collective reasoning was to see if there was an underlining diagnosis that would explain all the many health problems he has, something like a chromosomal thing.

At the time, Brian and I decided not to take him. We had just finished 6 months of various exams and tests that were hard on Gray (and me) and very expensive. All coming out normal. At the time, we did not feel we were getting anywhere on the traditional medical road so that was when we decided to put all our efforts into nutrition and diet changes.

We have been on the GAPS protocol for a year now (I plan to write a post on reflections of this year soon). Grayson has greatly improved but still experiences many of the same symptoms that we have no explanation for. A few weeks ago, he started a new (probably unrelated) symptom of frequent urination. REALLY frequent! Our doctor decided to test him for diabetes. After a very, very long week of waiting for test results, we found out the tests came back negative.

I'm so thankful for those results and I'm not too worried about the high amounts of urination. I do wonder about God's sense of humor sometimes. I have said for a while now that the majority of my work and chaos of daily life revolves mostly around bodily fluids and that my life would seem much calmer if everyone could keep their fluids inside their body or in the appropriate waste receptacle. At the season of my life when I think I might be able to potty train my youngest and burn the diaper champ, we now are buying more (bigger) diapers and the bodily fluids have increased! Ha, ha...

The week of not knowing was very difficult. I just hate not knowing what is wrong with my babies! I pray a lot for wisdom and guidance. Everyone has an idea, a pill, a method, a test, a treatment. There are so many options, all of which are expensive and may lead you to a dead end. We've been on so many roads and I'm not sure sometimes if we've even moved from where we've started. How do I know when to try a new road, to persevere down the one we're on, or if I'm even following all the directions?

All of this to say: I'm going down this medical road...again...for a while. I'm sure this doc will order many tests, which, because of our sucky insurance, will cost us greatly and may not give us any answers. He may diagnose him with something that makes no difference to his treatment or how we love him. He may also provide a piece to the puzzle. He may be able to tell me one small instruction. I've decided either way, its worth a journey down this road.

What I feel like God has pressed on my heart this past two weeks is that it is good and right and part of how he made me to fight for my kids. I feel crazy sometimes, and sometimes I am. But other times I am deeply in love with a God who is deeply in love with me and my kids. And when I remember how deeply he loves them I remember that if I never have answers I can still find rest while continuing on the road.

Here is a summary of Grayson's road that I had to type up for the specialist appointment tomorrow:

Birth:

low body temperature, taken to special care nursery in warmer, temperature did not change, taken to PICU temp raised (all lasting about 12-16 hours, formula given in PICU)
cried the most of the hospital stay. Difficulty sleeping even when held. Difficulty nursing
Nursing at home, continued to have sleeping difficulties. Cried at all times of day and at all times of being awake. Could not sleep for more than 10-15 minutes without waking up with a piercing cry and body wincing. Appeared to be in pain most of the time.

Infancy

Started Prevacid, made little change in temperament
Eliminated Dairy in mothers diet which helped some
Mom did a elimination diet (Dr. Sears) for 2 weeks
Challenged dairy with noticeable negative reaction
Colic type behavior continued until 4 months then much better
Continued to have reflux “burps” with the sound of food coming up and going back down, frequent hiccups
Soy and Dairy avoided by mom
Ear infections started around 4 months and were continuous (around 6 in 4 months)
High amounts of drooling
Frequent illnesses
Developmental milestones met WNL with noted Hypotonia

December -January 08 (9 months)

Tube surgery after multiple ear infections
Mother became pregnant which eliminated breast milk
Started on predigested dairy formula…eczema, increase in reflux burps and diarrhea started
Switched to soy formula and seemed to do great with formed bowel movements
Continued to have large amounts of drool, open mouth breathing and gagging with solid food (not initial pureed food but later chewable foods)

March 08 (11 months)

Frequent diarrhea returns (10-12 large, loose or mushy stools a day with a very foul odor) Stools often not held by the diaper due to consistency and/or volume. Food particles and mucus in stool
Continued to have multiple ear infections after tube surgery
Frequent illnesses
Continued high amounts of drool and open mouth breathing

June 08 (14 months)

Fitted by Physical Therapist at St. John’s hospital for orthodics due to hypotonia and late stage walking
Switched to rice milk at a year
IgA blood and skin testing done at SL Children’s Hospital-negative results
Celiac blood test-negative
IgG blood testing with following results:

3+ reaction to garlic
2+ reaction to peanut
2+ reaction to soy
1+ reaction to rice
Very Low reaction to almond, cane sugar, cow’s milk, goat’s milk, lentil, pineapple, tuna, beef, cheddar cheese, egg white, grape, oat, sweet potato, turkey, buckwheat, cod, egg yolk, grapefruit, orange, sesame, zucchini, cabbage, cottage cheese, gluten, lamb, pea, string bean

Attempted cow’s milk with strong negative reaction (intense stomach pains and listlessness).
Stools remain same (10-12 large, loose, food and mucous), reflux burps continue, drooling continues, gagging with food continues, eczema continues

August 08 (16 months)

Dietician consultation. Barb Lindeman advises to stay away from 3+ and 2+ foods but not to try to avoid 1+ or Very Low reaction foods. Increase fat, Carbohydrates, Vitamin D, and calcium
Gastroenterologist visit. Dr. Elizabeth Utterson orders Upper GI and small bowel follow through—done at SLCH—results normal
Start probiotic
Reflux burps improve
Diarrhea decreases in frequency 2-4/day. Not as loose.

December 08

Digestive Stool Analysis done-increased cholesterol in stool, no Lactobacilli noted

January 09

Soft Neck Tissue Xray at St. John’s notes adenoid enlargement

March 09

Adenoid and Tonsils removed
Drooling and open mouth breathing improve
Stools continue at 2-3/day large, mushy, food and mucous in stool
Continues to need orthodics due to hypotonia
Congestion continues
Eczema continues

September 09

Begin strict diet with elimination of sugar, grains, dairy, soy. Diet high in meats, vegetables and good fats.
Increase EFAs and add cultured vegetables and digestive enzymes
Skin turns orange in color for months
Catches a virus that caused vomiting and resulting dehydration-hospitalized for 3 days because he continued to be listless and often unresponsive. White blood cell count high enough to cause concern. Discharged when his count lowered and he would eat a couple bites of food.

April 10

Stools start to improve. Move to 1-2/day. Begin to see some formed stool with intermittent soft/mushy and intermittent diarrhea. Continue to see undigested food and mucous. Stool floats and is oily and dark in color.
Eczema eliminated

May 10

Anitbiotic started due to ear infection
Stools improve greatly. Start to see formed stools the majority of the time.

October 10

Begin urinating with high frequency (4-8 times an hour) with increase in thirst
Blood test for diabetes-negative
Stool continues to be soft, mush with intermittent formed stools. Undigested food continues to be seen in stool at much lesser degree and not as often. Mucous noted occasionally when stool is looser and more foul smelling. Occasionally looses stool when passing gas or throughout the day.
Distended belly gets larger through the day.
Has a large appetite and can be insatiable even after large amounts of nutrient dense food.

Apple Pie

2010-10-08T18:07:00.000-07:00

I have been avoiding cooking for a while now. I cook what I have to to get us by but I have been making the same few meals and have not baked anything for the kids. ("not cooking" is a very relative term...I use it to compare to the 2-6 hours a day I was spending). Thankfully I have an incredible church community that has rallied around our family to get us through this GAPS protocol. We have one more year to go.

I found a new blog that has inspired me to get back into cooking more and providing more healthy variety for the kids. Comfybelly.com She follows the SCD diet which is very similar to the GAPS protocol. Almost all her recipes are make with almond flour. I learned from her today that there is a difference in almond flours. I have been using Trader Joe's Almond Meal which is much cheaper then the Bob's Red Mill that Whole Foods carries. She recommends baking with blanched almond flour because the finer texture allows for more rise and a fluffier texture. She give many recommendations for where to buy more economical almond flour. I just bought 5lbs at $6 a pound at honeyvillegrain.com. Much cheeper than my choice at Whole Foods but still more than my current TJ's brand. Its worth it to me right now as I am hoping to make a baked good Tyler is excited about.

So today I made my first apple pie...ever. I used my Trader Joe's Almond meal and it worked fine. I'm excited to try it with the blanched almond flour to see if it makes a difference. We ate it for dessert tonight and even Brian loved it. (Annabelle had just the filling to avoid the eggs in the crust). I followed the recipe from Comfybelly. I used clarified butter instead of butter to make it dairy free. I also forgot to peel the apples. When I realized it I decided just leave the peels. That is the only part of the pie we didn't like. This may be obvious to everyone, (but since I have such little experience with cooking it was not to me) you really need to peel the apples.

To anyone following the GAPS protocol or suffering from any Inflammatory Bowel Disease, you will find Comfybelly a gold mine. For everyone else, I would encourage you to consider trying out some almond flour. Its easy to digest, lowers cholesterol, provides more vitamins and minerals than wheat flour, is high in protein, and a good source of fiber. The almond meal from Trader Joe's is very economical and states on the package you can substitute it for up to 50% of all-purpose flour in any recipe.

Happy Alternative Baking!

Morning Smoothie

2010-08-22T07:52:00.000-07:00

My oldest started kindergarten last week so we have been in a big state of transition. Our diet has needed to adjust as well. Tyler's school serves breakfast so every morning I send in 2 snacks, a breakfast, and a lunch. I'm hoping to post soon some of the fun lunches and lunch systems I've found as I've been preparing for the last month.

Anyway, I've decided to start doing smoothies for breakfast and then I'll send something for his breakfast to school. I think it will make our morning go faster than cooking a big breakfast and then I'll know he'll get a large serving of vegetables.

I was inspired by this article from the Body Ecology Diet website on healthy breakfast ideas. You'll find more recipes there for more smoothies and other breakfasts.

Here is the smoothie we had this morning (it was a hit):

GREEN SMOOTHIE

Juice made from 4-5 carrots and 2 celery stalks run through the juicer

1 medium zucchini

2 handfuls of raw spinach

1 green apple

1 cup of frozen broccoli

3 Tbsp of nut/seed oil blend

1/2-1/4 cup of Coconut Milk Kiefer

Next time I think I'll add some liquid from our cultured vegetables to add some probiotics.

Quick, easy lunch

2010-07-11T10:45:00.000-07:00

I seem to always forget about this easy option for lunch and when I remember its like a light beaming through the dark clouds. Do you have those clouds? The clouds of: I forgot to plan for something, there is nothing in the fridge, and I don't feel like cooking.

It only requires 2 ingredients and I usually have them in the freezer. It takes less than 10 minutes. It is very nutritious and healing for the tummy and builds the immune system. Are you dying to know? Its, Pea Soup. Kind of a let down after all that build-up, isn't it? You aren't going to win many friends by inviting them over for "Pea Soup." But, if you can get over the name, the green color, and the fact that its probably the top meal served at nursing homes, I think you'll love it as much as we do. Here is the recipe:

Pea Soup
Ingredients:
One bag of frozen green peas
Chicken Stock
Salt

Method:
I make ours in the VitaMix so you if you do not have one you'll have to adjust. First I dump the entire bag of peas into the containter. (You can reserve some to put in after the soup is done for garnish). Then I add enough chicken stock to meet the top of the peas. (This is usually about 3 cups). I add about 1TBsp of sea salt and blend. I blend for about 5 minutes until hot. That's it!

As I am typing my kids have asked for more soup 4 times.

Yoda Bars

2010-06-30T12:21:00.001-07:00

My cousin Laura has been making these yummy bars for us for a while. I originally found the recipe at the blog Thinking Outside the Box.

She calls her granola-type bar: Walnut, Coconut & Cinnamon Bars. We have termed them Yoda bars because Laura served them as such at her son's Star Wars themed 5th birthday party. My kids love them, they are freezable, portable and just delicious. We have a hard time keeping them around. Here is the recipe (if you want to see step-by-step photos go here:

INGREDIENTS:

1 & ½ cups of dates
1 cup of walnuts
2/3 cup of desiccated coconut
½ tsp cinnamon

METHOD:

Soak the walnuts for several hours and dehydrate until dry and ‘crispy’ (about 24 hours).

Place the dates in a food processor and work until they are completely mashed and form a ball. Place into a mixing bowl. Next pulse the walnuts and coconut in the food processor until they become pretty fine but not a flour. Add this to the mixing bowl together with the cinnamon.

I do this in the VitaMix. I do the walnuts and coconut first and do not rinse. The nut powder helps the dates not stick so much. Then, cut up dates first and put in 2-3 at a time. Run in the dry container if you have one at speed 7.

Working with your hands knead the ingredients together well. Then divide the mixture into six equal sized balls.

Mould each ball into the shape of a bar with with your hands. Then using a piece of non-stick paper on a flat surface press the bar against the surface on each of its edges to form a fabulous firm bar shape!

Repeat with each ball of mixture.

Wrap the bar in a piece of non-stick or greaseproof paper and seal with a little tape. Refrigerate. If freezing, put in freezable bag.

The recipe makes 6 bars. I have made another two varieties with pecans or brazil nuts instead of walnuts.

GAPS update and our little adaptations

2010-06-30T11:58:00.000-07:00

I know it has been forever since I've last posted. I've noticed that is a common theme among GAPS bloggers. When I visit another GAPS blog and see that they haven't posted in a very long time I feel an instant connection to them. I am pretty sure I know what they are going through. Following GAPS does not permit you much time for anything else. So hats off to you GAPS bloggers that manage to blog regularly and follow the protocol...you are amazing! For the rest of you: hang in there, we'll make it! If you are anything like me, it is also hard to blog when you are not feeling "rah, rah, rah" about the protocol. So, if you are following my blog and I haven't written in a while it is probably an indication that I am struggling with being fully on board with this crazy thing. I am constantly re-evaluating this approach and its practicality in our family.

We are beginning our 11th month on GAPS. I should clarify that the kids are the only ones that have been consistently on the protocol for the entire time. I have decided that I can not stick so strictly to it at this time in my life. It is too hard to plan for my meals and theirs. I am allowing myself freedom but I am also trying to eat as best as I can.

Honestly...The trying started yesterday. For the 2 months prior to yesterday (the 2 months I was not blogging), I have been eating everything in site. Needless to say, I don't feel the greatest.

So, here is to a new start at a road of moderation for me. For the kids, things are going great! Tyler hardly ever shows signs of hyperactivity, impulsivity, high irritability, sensory defensiveness, rigidity, etc (at least not more than most 6 year olds). All of their stools have normalized for the majority of the time. They all still have very distended bellies after meals and there are still days when diarrhea strikes and because I don't take records, I really don't know why. While many people that follow the GAPS protocol take data religiously, I have come to terms with the fact that that will not work for me. I can not do that, and I am okay with not doing this protocol perfectly. For me, if I stress out about doing it perfectly it is too overwhelming to do at all.

So, for those GAPS purists that will be aghast at my following list of adaptations: close your eyes. For anyone else following GAPS that is overwhelmed or on the verge of quitting, here are some of the adaptations we make:
-Applegate Farms Organic Chicken Hot Dogs (we eat at least once a week now)
-Trader Joes Raw Almond Butter instead of making my own
-Trader Joes Almond Meal instead of grinding my own almond flour
-Whole Foods Brand all fruit jelly
-canned coconut milk with guar gum (guar gum is a no-no on the protocol)
-baking special occasion treats with baking soda and/or baking powder
-baking special occasion treats with organic cocoa
-Stevia
-Erythritol
-commercially available dried fruit and fruit leathers with no sugar
-most of our vegetables are not organic (we can't afford it otherwise)
-Spectrum Canola Oil Mayo

That is all I can think of now; I'm sure there are more. Its good to be back blogging again and hopefully I will be a little more regular. I have lots of new recipes to share.

-

REAL Pancakes!

2010-04-14T13:51:00.001-07:00

It's been a while since I've done any baking. Mostly because its a lot of work and the kids will gobble up 30 minutes of work in about 3 minutes. I am also really limited in recipes as we can not tolerate any sweetener, even honey. Also, about half of the new recipes I try end up failing. It would help if I was a better cook. I don't have that natural skill..maybe someday.

Well, I was motivated to get some freezable snacks for our vacation in a couple of months. Even though its about 90 degrees in my kitchen today, I decided to do a mass baking day. It was a successful cooking day.

Tyler helped (which means he mostly licked all the spoons and bowls) me make muffins and pancakes. We tried a couple of recipes and the last one we tried was a hit! "These taste like REAL pancakes," Tyler yelled after he tried one. They really do. We made them with sunflower seeds which is the first time we've tried them on the GAPS diet. So, the hope will be that our tummies can handle butter made from sunflower seeds and then these can become a staple in our house.

Here is the recipe:
BANANA PEANUT BUTTER PANCAKES
from Pecan Bread

1 ripe banana
1/4 cup peanut butter (we used Sunflower Seed butter) (see below for how I made the butter)
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon baking soda (not GAPS legal so we left out)

Mix all ingredients with a mixer. Spoon into hot oiled (coconut oil) skillet and brown on both sides

Tip: Small pancakes are easier to turn.

How to make sunflower butter
Sprout seeds first to nuetralize phytic acid which inhibits absorption of minerals and neutralizes enzyme inhibitors which can make seeds difficult to digest.
Fill a mason jar 1/3 full with raw, hulled sunflower seeds. Add filtered water to the top of the jar and screw on the top with a screen insert. Allow the seeds to soak overnight, for one night only, and pour off the water. Rinse the seeds well-you can do this without removing the top. Invert the jar and let it sit at an angle so it can drain, and to allow air to circulate. The seeds should be rinsed 2 times per day. Sprouts are ready in 12-18 hours, when the sprout is just barely showing.

Rinse the seeds again and drain before putting into a food processor or blender. I used my VitaMix which is my most favorite thing in my kitchen (thanks mom and dad!). Blend into a butter.

Taco Skillet

2010-03-04T08:57:00.000-08:00

This was one of our favorite recipes before we started GAPS. We loved it because it only requires dirtying one pan, it makes great left overs. You can fill tortillas with it, put in on a salad, or make nachos out of it as a second meal. I finally figured out how to adapt it and it has become a weekly staple. Discovering that cauliflower can be shredded and used like rice has opened the door to new meals like this as well as Turkey Hash and Chicken Fried Rice

Here is the original recipe (not GAPS legal)
1 pound ground beef
1 envelope (1 1/4 ounces) taco seasoning mix
1 1/2 cups water
1 cup thick and chunky salsa
1 cup frozen whole kernel corn
1 1/2 cups uncooked instant brown rice
3/4 cup shredded taco-seasoned cheese ( 4 ounces)
1 cup shredded lettuce
1 medium tomato, chopped
sour cream, if desired

1. Cook beef in 10-inch skillet over medium heat 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until brown; drain
2. Stir in seasoning mix, water, salsa and corn. Heat to boiling; stir in rice. Boil 1 minute remove from heat. Cover and let stand 8 minutes .
3. Fluff rice mixture with fork; sprinkle with cheese. Cover and let stand 1 to 2 minutes or until cheese is melted. Sprinkle lettuce around edge of skillet; sprinkle tomato in circle next to lettuce. Serve with sour cream and tortilla chips.

GAPS legal recipe
1 pound ground beef
1 medium onion finely chopped
2-4 Tbsp of fat/oil for sauteing (olive, coconut, lard, tallow, ghee)
1 large head of cauliflower (this will be used as a rice substitute)
2 Tbsp of chili powder
1-2 tsp. of ground cumin
1-2 tsp. of garlic powder (eliminated for us because of Grayson's allergy)
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 to 1 whole bag of frozen pepper strips (from Trader Joe's)
Handful of broccoli broken into small pieces
1-2 cups of homemade chicken, turkey, or beef stock

1. Cut the core and large stems from head of cauliflower, discard. Wash cauliflower chunks.
2. Shred cauliflower in food processor or with a grater. We used the VitaMix and it is awesome!
3. Saute the onion in skillet with the fat/oil until translucent but not browned.
4. Add ground beef and cook until browned
5. Add seasonings while cooking beef
6. Once beef is cooked, add 1 cup of stock, shredded cauliflower, and frozen peppers
7. Saute until cauliflower rice is soft, adding more stock to keep from drying out
8. Add broccoli in the last few minutes of cooking just to soften
9. Cook until the liquid has evaporated and cauliflower rice is soft and caramelized

Why my friends ROCK!

2010-03-04T08:40:00.000-08:00

I have been overwhelmed lately by the outpouring of love to our family. Last week, two women from our church made and froze 30+ hamburger buns for us to keep on hand. We use tons of these in place of bread for sandwiches, hamburgers, etc. You can read Maddie's comments about cooking for us with her mom on her blog.

Yesterday, Maddie came over for about 5 hours and we cooked all kinds of stuff. She helped me experiment with some GAPS cupcake recipes to come up with one that is sweetened without honey (we are having bad reactions to this) or Stevia (Stevia has a funny taste). We have a wedding next weekend so I need a cupcake to bring as a wedding cake replacement for the kids.

Two days ago a friend in the church went to Whole Foods for us and made a much needed grocery run.

Last week one friend sent me a lengthy card with tons of encouragement and love. She then followed up with emails.

For the last three weeks, my cousin has cooked large batches of staple food items for us to freeze and have on hand.

Last week my wonderful friend threw me a surprise party. She invited five other women and they showered me with love. All the women contributed to a GAPS friendly dinner and dessert. While we enjoyed our ginger tea and pumpkin meringue the women went around and shared answers to prepared questions about what they valued and saw in me. It was humbling and overwhelmingly wonderful. The point was to communicate to me that they are "for me" and in my corner during this trying season.

I know there are other ways people have loved us that I am forgetting.

I am in a season of feeling like I have been stripped of everything. It has been painful (physically and emotionally) but it has been the richest season of my life. Our God is more than enough to fill me when I feel empty.

We sang in a hymn last week: "Empty handed, but alive in His hands" That is a perfect description of how I feel right now. I wouldn't have asked for it, but I am grateful.

My new favorite food

2010-02-21T20:34:00.000-08:00

I discovered this recipe last week on Grain-free Foodie. I had to make a few modifications because we can not tolerate honey. My sweet cousin offered to make them for me and she loved them. I love when the food we eat tastes good to other people too. Laura made a batch with 3 lbs of sausage and I froze them by the dozen. They are perfect for snacks or meals on the go. I feel so good when the kids eat them because they are getting protein, fat, and veggies all at once.

Sausage Patties
Combine:
1 lb ground pastured pork
1/4 tsp of liquid Stevia or 1 packet of powder
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp chopped or grated onion
2 tsp freshly grated ginger
1/4 tsp dried sage
1/4 tsp dried thyme
1/2-1 cup of pureed cooked veggies (we used green beans)
2 frozen fat pureed from previously cooked chicken (optional)

Form the meat into patties and fry in fat (lard, tallow or ghee) or coconut oil. I find that smaller patties work better. This is a great way to "hide" healthy things, such as marrow or pureed or chopped soft tissue.

Caring for Us

2010-02-21T20:06:00.001-08:00

Many people have offered to help us in some way and I am so thankful. They feel at a loss, as do I, as to what to do. I am attempting to provide a way to make that easier. I am going to make a list of things that would be helpful. It will take me a while to gather all the links to the recipes so this post will be a work in progress.

If you would like to cook for us or have us over for dinner:
All the recipes on the blog are safe to make. If you are unsure of an ingredient you can check the page: what we can eat. The following list are recipes and items we use the most.

Freezable Snacks and Staples
Sandwich Buns (we need these the most)
Sausage Patties (we need these the second most)
Meatballs
Pancakes
Veggie Muffins
Egg Muffins
Egg Pizza
Chicken Nuggets
Chicken Stock
Beef Stock
Banana Pancakes
Yoda Bars

Meals
Shepherd's Pie
Beef Stew
Chicken/Turkey Soup (like chicken noodle soup without the noodles)
Cilantro Chicken Salad
Stuffed Cabbage Soup
Turkey Hash
Roast with veggies
Roast chicken with veggies
Salmon, Tilapia or any fish grilled, baked, broiled, etc. with veggies
Pork Chops
Ribs
Hamburgers with avocado buns or with lettuce wraps
Spaghetti Squash with tomato sauce or with olive oil and basil
Shrimp with avocados
Stir-Fry (without rice)
Broccoli Cauliflower Salad
Pea Soup
Tuna Salad
Roasted Red Pepper Soup in acorn squash bowls

If you would like to run an errand:
It is very difficult to go in any store with three little children, especially when you can't buy them food to occupy them. If you are going to run an errand for yourself, give me a call and see if there is something I might need there too. The places I most often need stuff from are: Target, Trader Joes, Whole Foods, and any grocery store.

If you would like to come spend time with me and my kids:
I could always use company or a helping hand to play with the kids, fold laundry or do some other household chores that are more than neglected.

If you would like to pray for us:
I have prayer requests listed here

Prayer for us

2010-01-26T14:56:00.000-08:00

Our sweet church has been so wonderful at caring for me and my family during this season. I was asked today to write down prayer requests. I thought I would share them here in case someone else is led to pray for us too.

1. Healing: That God would heal our tummies, provide our body with the knowing of how to digest food properly
2. Wisdom: That God would provide Brian and me with wisdom in regard to which avenue to seek for healing, wisdom and discernment to sift through all the varied opinions and options regarding how to heal
3. Relief: That God would provide and lead me and my doctor to something that will relieve my painful eczema and intense itching
4. Strength: That God would give me the self-control and strength to avoid food not on the protocol and endurance to keep up with the organization and amount of cooking...and amount of kiddie poop clean-up.
5. Sanctification: That God would draw me closer to Him as I learn to rely on Him and not on myself.

Roast with Rice and Gravy

2010-01-14T16:37:00.000-08:00

I really don't have time to be posting right now but I'm too excited not too. Tonight's dinner got rave reviews from everyone...including my husband. My husband is very sweet and supportive but a lot of our "GAPS" meals are not his favorite. He smiles and says thank you on most nights because he knows I might cry if he doesn't. :)

But, tonight's dinner got more than a few "this is really good" comments. Rice and gravy is one of his favorite dishes so I tried to replicate that for him tonight. "More rice," was heard lots around the table.

We ate it with a chuck roast I cooked in the slow cooker. I purchased the meat from Sappington Farmers Market which has become one of my favorite places to shop. The prices on produce are very low and they have a selection of pastured meat and chicken from local farmers. (Pastured means the animals are grass fed and cared for humanely. Grass fed animals produce meat that is much better for you and easier to digest).

The prices on meat are more than if I order from Greenwood Farms and others that are at the Schlafly and Tower Grove Farmers Markets but in the winter I don't have access to those as easily. Sappington FM also usually has some cuts of meat that are highly reduced in price for quick sale.

Here is our dinner and how I turned it into soup for tomorrow:

Crock-Pot Chuck Roast
Put roast (grass fed organic chuck roast) in crock pot in the morning (I had our in by 9am and we ate at 5)
Pour 1-2 cups of home made beef stock in
Roughly chop one onion and spread around
Around lunch time drop in a package of organic baby carrots
Sprinkle salt and seasonings to taste

Cauliflower Rice
Grate cauliflower
Steam 3 minutes
Serve topped with gravy

Gravy (dairy & gluten free)
Scoop juice from crock pot into sauce pan
Heat to boiling
Slowly sprinkle Xanthan gum while whisking mixture (not GAPS legal)
It doesn't take much and the gravy will thicken as it stands
If it gets too thick, add more juice from crock pot

Left over Beef Stew
Pull out any meat that was not eaten
Pour left over gravy into crock pot
Using a hand held blender, mix up all the juice, onions, carrots and gravy in the crock pot
Shred the reserved meat and add to stew
Add more veggies if desired
Tomorrow's lunch!

I just have to add that while I was typing this Grayson ran up to me to say something funny. He then ran away as fast as he could, about six feet...straight into the kitchen cabinets. Literally, straight into them! Not a turn, or a slip, just full speed face right in the cabinet and then bounced back, sprawled out on the floor. He just shook it off and went on his way. You got to love him!

Chicken Nuggets-GAPS style

2010-01-03T15:56:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow, when I pick the boys up from school I hope to go shoe shopping. Simple errands are not simple anymore because I can't pack up a simple snack or stop to get something while we're out. Since my children are bottomless pits, I always have to think ahead about what we'll have to eat. I am always looking for food options that we can eat on the go. Today I tried making chicken nuggets for our outing tomorrow. I was inspired by my friend Almut's blog post on recycled chicken nuggets which look awesome. They have a lot of stuff we can't have right now but for anyone else they would be worth checking out.

Ours turned out okay. They taste great but don't hold together very well.

CHICKEN TOTS
by Liz at Pecan Bread

1 cup of finely ground cooked pastured chicken (better boiled than baked)
½ cup of pureed cooked green beans (or another veggie/s)
2-3 ground or cut raw garlic cloves (we can't do this b/c Gray is allergic to Garlic)
unrefined coconut oil, lard, tallow, or ghee
salt
spices (optional)
pastured chicken liver (optional)

1. Combine the chicken, green beans, liver, and garlic in a bowl.
You can also just grind the chicken, green beans, liver, and the garlic together in the food processor.
Add spices or seasoning if you like. It should come out moist and pasty like tuna salad.
2. Roll into little meatballs and flatten like patties.
3. Add sufficient fat/oil in a pan or they'll stick. (I used lard for frying as I have read that heating olive oil changes its nutritional value and turns it into a trans fat. I am also trying to get more saturated fats into the kids diets since we do not eat dairy)
4. Fry the little patties on both sides until brown.

They should look like tiny breaded burgers.
Sprinkle with salt.
Enjoy!

Diving off the Wagon

2010-01-03T15:45:00.000-08:00

I would say I fell off the wagon, but that would be describing the last 2 weeks lightly. Running and then diving off the wagon would better describe the eating frenzy I've been on. I knew starting over on the intro diet 3 weeks before the Holidays would be hard but I overestimated my willpower.

Tyler had a Christmas program at school followed by a cookie exchange. The room was filled with probably 50 different types of cookies and they were all calling me. After being strong for at least 30 minutes I decided I could have one bit of one cookie. I walked all around looking for the perfect cookie and tried to savor my one bite. It was not the best cookie. I looked for another option. Took one more bite and was still disappointed. I stopped there but on the drive home I sat with Tyler's "special" cookies on my lap. Mad and feeling sorry for myself, I ate all dozen of Tyler's cookies (knowing it would upset my GI issues the next day).

When I got home I was unstoppable. From that moment on I ate "anything in front of me," as my husband described it. I ate pounds (yes, multiple) of chocolate covered nuts, cookies, and pie.

I recommitted to the GAPS protocol yesterday (1/1). Happy New Year. I am frustrated with myself. My symptoms are back in full force. 2 weeks ago I was feeling so great, I was really making progress and now I'm faced with the reality that I my body may be back in the state it was in in September.

I am debating whether or not I will start over on the Intro Diet. The Intro Diet has 8 stages that start with just stock, boiled meat and veggies and then progressively adds harder to digest foods. I could start all over or I could try moving forward from where I ended. Or, I could eat the full GAPS diet which would seem surprisingly nonrestrictive. I know the best thing for my gut would be to start all over but I just don't know if I can do it. I'm wondering if it would be wiser to follow the protocol that is the least restrictive with the expectation that I can follow it without feeling deprived and without the risk of diving off the wagon for the third time.

The good news is we are seeing great progress with Grayson. Its nice to know that there is a point to this.

Christmas Recipes

2009-12-18T09:14:00.001-08:00

I am doing this post more for me that anything else. I've spent the last few days collecting recipes to get us through Christmas. Our celebrating starts tonight.

Dinner:
Ham
Broccoli
Glazed Turnips
-2 lbs turnips, peeled and quartered
-4 T. ghee
-1 cup beef stock
-plunge turnips into boiling salted, filtered water fr 3-5 minutes. Drain and pat dry. Saute in ghee until lightly browned. Add stock and boil down until turnips are coated and liquid has almost completely evaporated.

Breakfast Tomorrow (for opening our stockings):

Egg Casserole

6 eggs
1 c. milk (I'm going to try to sub with 3/4 c. chicken stock)
2 Tbsp. ghee, melted
1-2 cups chopped spinach
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
about 1 c. diced ham
Cashew Cheese
1 tsp olive oil or coconut oil
1/2 cup cashews, soaked for at least 6 hours
1 1/4 cup water
drain the cashews and put them in blender with the water. Blend until very
smooth.
In a skillet, add the cashew milk and turn heat to high.
Stir frequently to prevent sticking and reduce to a low
simmer as soon as it boils. Keep stirring and cover to
keep it from splattering. Continue to cook for a few
more minutes, then remove it from heat.
preheat oven to 400. Grease 9X9 pan with ghee or coconut oil. With wire whisk, beat eggs, stock, spinach, salt, pepper, and ghee until mixed. Add cashew cheese. Pour into pan. Sprinkle ham evenly over top. Bake 20 min or until set and golden.
I may leave out the cashew cheese as this will be a test to see if we can tolerate cashew butter and we can't over do it. Most of the other recipes for the day also have cashew butter in them.

Cashew Butter Pancakes
Ingredients:
1 C pureed, cooked squash or zuchinni
1 C nut butter (we used cashew butter made from soaking cashew 6 hours then blending)
5 pastured or free-range organic eggs
1/2 tsp salt
1 T cinnamon
dash of cloves, nutmeg, and any other "pumpkin pie" type spice

Method:
Separate the eggs, and beat the whites until fluffy (soft peaks are fine). In a large bowl, mix together the 5 egg yolks, the squash, the nut butter, and the salt and spices. Blend thoroughly. Fold the egg whites into this mixture gently, so that the resulting batter is airy and light.

Cook on a well-greased griddle on a somewhat low heat, as they do burn easily. Flip them gently as they do not stay together as well as regular pancakes.

Jesus' Birthday Cupcakes
-1 c. cashew butter (made from soaked cashews)
-1 Tbsp. ghee or unrefined coconut oil
-1/2-1tsp. stevia
-2 pastured or free-range organic eggs seperated
-Mix stevia, butter. ghee and egg yolks together. Beat egg whites until stiff then fold into mixture. Pour into cup cake liners.
-Frosting:
--1/2 c. ghee
--3/4 tsp. stevia
--1-1.5tsp vanilla (alcohol free)
--1/8c. nut butter
Bake at 300 for about 20 min for cupcakes

Christmas Cookies
2 cups almond flour (I get mine at Trader Joe's)
4 T ghee, melted (Coconut oil also works)
1/4 cup honey or 1/4-1/2 tsp. Stevia
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cloves
1/8 tsp salt

Optional add-ins: 1/2 cup raisins, 1/4 cup shredded coconut, 1/4 cup chopped nuts
350 degrees

1. Cream together first three ingredients. Add the spices.
2. Fold in optional ingredients, if using.
3. Drop by spoonfuls on parchment-lined cookie sheets.
4. Bake for 10-12 minutes.

another day

2009-12-14T04:08:00.000-08:00

"Any problem that comes while I obey God (and there will be many), increases my overjoyed delight, because I know that my Father knows and cares, and I can watch and anticipate how He will unravel my problems." -Oswald Chambers from My Utmost for His Highest

I have had some harder days. Friday, I had one of the worst die off reactions I've had. I could hardly stand up, couldn't think straight, felt very moody and easily frustrated. Thankfully, Brian came home a little earlier and I was able to take a detox bath which really helped. He also gave me a big break this weekend and took care of the kids most of the weekend. I've had a set back in my symptoms due to eating out three times this weekend...even though almost everything I ate was something I've been able to handle so far. (I did cheat and eat 4 chocolates at Brian's holiday party, they were just too beautiful). This is the point I get very discouraged and start to feel sorry for myself.

The above quote from Oswald Chambers is helpful today to help me rely on God for strength to get back on the wagon and find joy in another day of chicken soup.

The good, the bad, and the ugly

2009-12-10T13:24:00.000-08:00

I have been putting of doing a post on this subject for a while because of the topic. Poop. There it is...I said it. I can't put it off any longer because it is a main topic in our home. I have also learned and benefited from so many other bloggers describing their situations. I will not go into detail...my mother-in-law reads this blog. :)

All I have to say is you might think all poop is ugly until you've waited 3 years for a normal one. Then, that my friends, is a beautiful sight! We are starting to see normal BMs in our house!! This crazy thing we're doing is starting to work. AB is still struggling and Grayson is just barely making progress, but its progress.

So, I know everyone is asking now if their own poop is "beautiful" poop. The Bristol Stool Chart gives an example of how to classify your BMs.

Type 5 is ideal, and Type 4 is close to ideal.

Type 6 is borderline normal. Type 7 is diarrhea. Types 1-3 are all constipation.

To read more about the Bristol Stool chart and what constitutes as normal stool click here.

We have made it a week into the Intro Diet (Part 2). It has been a great week! I can't believe how much easier it is the second time around. I have experienced die off reactions but they pass. Last time, I never felt like they passed. It is definitely hard when it hits me. All of a sudden I will feel like I can hardly stand up and I can't think straight. I might also have a wave of emotions but then I'll have long stretches of feeling pretty good. And, I've already told you about our poop victory.

Gray and AB have been very happy with the food. No one complains when we have beef stew for breakfast. It really has been a restful and peaceful week. Tyler has been with my mom during this time and now that he is back I feel the need to be more creative with our food again. He is much more focused on food and much more opinionated about what is being served. He asks about eating ALL day long. He doesn't eat much at meal times and then begs for snacks all day. This causes stress at meal times and tension all during the day. I've been brainstorming ways to alleviate this and would love input from other moms as to how they handle picky eater, refusal to eat and constant demands for snack.

This is my current strategy: Keep our meal time rules of
1. at least one bite of everything
2. no complaining or arguing about the food (asking for something not on the plate or table is considered arguing)
3. staying at the table until everyone is done eating

These have always been our rules but I start to enforce other rules because I get fearful that he won't eat. I make him eat x amount of veggies before he can have more meat or be done, etc. Can't have dessert until you've eaten x. I've decided I'm going to lay off and try very hard not to get into battle with him, even if he only eats one bite of everything on his plate for every meal.

My other strategy is to serve dinner family style. If they had it their way they would eat only their favorites and keep asking for more and more of that until their full and ignored their veggies. By having the food in the middle of table I hope they'll be able to get a visual of when the preferred food is gone or needed to be saved so others can some.

My last strategy is to keep a box in the fridge that is for Tyler's snacks. I'll fill it in the morning and he can help himself to any snack in there but when they're gone, they're gone. If its not in the snack box then it's not a snack for today. We'll see how it goes.

Like I said, I would love any ideas. My main goal is to give him more control and to alleviate the arguing and bantering that goes on surrounding food.

Back to the intro diet...We've taken it a lot slower this time with the introduction of one new vegetable a day so I can see if we react to vegetables. I've updated the list of what we can eat and will try to update it regularly.

Thanks for all the encouraging words and prayers. Keep them coming!

Back Again

2009-12-03T06:40:00.002-08:00

It's been a very long time since my last post and there are many reasons for that. The first being the fact that I am spending so much time cooking that I don't have time for many other things. The other reason is we've been traveling. Brian and I got to go on our first vacation (just the two of us) in five years, since the birth of our first born. I know many people don't get that at all and it was such a treat. We were gone for a week and my children stayed with my in-laws and my mom. I had to cook food for them to eat while gone (though my mom bit the bullet in learning to cook all these new recipes and cooked all her food) and cook food for me to take with me. We returned from vacation and left 10 days later to visit family for Thanksgiving.

This has made the work load for cooking much larger and its also been hard to stay motivated. I took a break from the diet while on vacation because, well, its vacation. That has made it hard to get back into it once home. I reached a day a couple of weeks ago (in between trips) where I hit a wall and could not cook another thing. It has also been such a struggle with my oldest. He has always been obsessed with eating and he is so sad about all the food missing. Every meal was becoming a battle and I couldn't take the arguing anymore.

We decided to give him a "break" from the diet. He was elated with this news. The "break" is just taking him off the Intro diet and moving him to full GAPS diet. We also let him have GAPS illegal treats over Thanksgiving. I am really seeing the effects of it now. Like my husband said the other day, "it feels like we can't win either way." With the illegal foods he has had severe stomach aches, become very argumentative and controlling (behavior we used to see back in the spring before we took him off of dairy and soy), had less control over his body (always moving, in your space, falling off of chairs, etc), and now he is more resistant to the foods he was eating well (cultured vegetables, supplements, even eggs).

My husband and I have had a lot of talks lately about what does "middle ground" look like for us. Its a hard question. To follow the GAPS protocol does not allow for much middle ground and if we want to see long term healing, we need to follow the protocol as close as possible. But, the stress it causes to follow the protocol can not be healthy either.

So, this is where we're at right now. I have started the Intro Diet over again--I'm on Day 4. I spent about a month cheating and not sticking strictly to the diet and have started feeling awful again. It took me about 6 weeks to get to stage 3 before, I'm hoping it won't take near as long to progress this time. I am going to be more careful about what vegetables and spices I introduce and really look for reactions.

I am also starting Gray (my second) over again tomorrow. My mom is taking my oldest for a few days so I don't have to deal with feeding them different things. I am praying we move fast with Gray so when my oldest comes back I can feed them somewhat similar things.

I feel a lot more prepared this time. I know its going to be hard. I'm expecting to feel very tired and moody for at least a month. I know now it will get better. At about 2 months into the diet I was really feeling positive and liking the foods. My cravings are strong right now but now as strong as they've been in the past.

My biggest prayer is to feel joy and peace in the midst of disappointment and trial. Every diaper, every meal, every behavior, every refusal of food is a chance for me to feel like a failure. I want to not be rocked by those circumstances and instead keep my eye on God's ability to give me wisdom and strength.

What do you eat?

2009-10-21T10:12:00.000-07:00

Everyone is always asking me what we can eat or if they would like to make us something "what can't we eat?" The main idea of the GAPS diet is to eat lots of vegetables, meat, eggs, fruit(in moderation), and nuts (soaked first) and avoid all grains, sugar, soy, and starches(potatoes, corn, rice). We avoid dairy though many people on GAPS can do dairy.

Here is the list of what is currently "safe" for our tummies:

Updated 1/11/11

Eggs (preferably organic, pastured but I'm not so picky anymore)
Any meat cooked any way(preferably organic, pastured but again I'm not picky)
Seafood (cooked any way, including canned fish as long as packed in water) Gray is allergic to crab
Nut Butters (preferably from raw organic nuts, soaked first, then ground into butter)(we use Trader Joe's Raw Almond Butter) Gray and Annabelle are allergic to peanuts
Fermented Vegetables (pickles, pickled beets, saurkraut, etc)(made without vinegar)
Ghee (clarified butter), lard, tallow, olive oil, avocado oil, coconut oil, sesame seed oil
Raw, Organic Apple Cider Vinegar or white vinegar
Weak coffee, weak herbal tea
Occasionally dry wine, gin and scotch
All spices and herbs Gray and Annabelle are allergic to garlic.
Limited Honey
White Navy Beans (soaked first), Lentils
Fruit (we try to limit the kids fruit to 1-2 a day)

all fruit except cantaloupe, melon, and plum

Most non-starchy vegetables: The highlighted vegetables are for sure safe. The others have not been tested. We can handle them raw or cooked (grilled, sauteed, baked, broiled, steamed, boiled---its all okay now).

Artichoke, French
Asparagus
Avocados, including avocado oil
Bok Choy
Broccoli
Brussels sprouts
Cabbage
Capers
Carrots
Cauliflower
Celeriac
Celery
Collard greens
Cucumber
Garlic (NO garlic for Grayson or Annabelle) (the rest of us do fine)
Ginger root, fresh
Kale
Lettuce, all kinds
Olives preserved without sugar or any other non-
allowed ingredients
Onions
Parsley
Peppers (yellow, red, and orange)
Pickles, without sugar or any other non-allowed ingredients
Pumpkin
Radish
Spinach
Squash (summer and winter)
String (green) beans
Tomato puree, pure without any additives apart from salt
Tomato juice, without any additives apart from salt
Tomatoes
Turnips
Watercress
Zucchini

Here are the highlights of what is not on this protocol:

No dairy
No grains
No starches (potatoes, rice, parsnips, etc.)
No sugar (no agave nectar, or other natural sugar) We cheat and have Stevia

Halloween when you're sugar free?

2009-10-21T09:11:00.000-07:00

I have been racking my brain for weeks now trying to think of what we will do for Halloween when your diet consists of cooked meat and vegetables. I've been searching everywhere on-line for ideas of sweets I can make for the boys that will be somewhat exciting.

We have always celebrated Halloween with the little white lie that "The Great Pumpkin" comes by our house on Halloween night after the boys are asleep. The boys leave their candy (after they've eaten some) on the porch and the great pumpkin comes and leaves them a present. That tradition will help but I still want to be able to give them something as we go trick or treating that they will look forward to.

I have a few ideas listed below that I'm going to try to make. I don't know what to handout to the trick-or-treaters that come to our house. I don't want to hand out candy that our kids can't have but I also can't possibly make enough of our treats to pass out. Any ideas?

Many of you have offered to make us food or help in some way. Here are a list of the "treats" I have found that I am going to try to make. If you would like to attempt any of them I would greatly appreciate any help. I understand that it might be hard given the list of ingredients.

FYI: most call for Stevia (this is a herb that tastes sweet, I've heard you can find it at Schnucks, Dierburgs, and Trader Joe's. I know they have it at Whole Foods and The Natural Way).

MERINGUES
from Pecan Bread

4 egg whites
dash of salt
1/2 tsp Stevia
parchment paper

Make sure your bowl and whipping attachment are dry as one drop of water will ruin your meringues.
Let the eggs sit out on counter until room temperature.
Separate eggs by putting the whites in a bowl and either throwing away the yolk or saving it for a custard.
Whip up the egg whites until they are white and stick to the spoon.
Slowly drizzle the Stevia in and add a dash of salt.
Spoon small dollops onto parchment paper that has been fitted to a cookie sheet. Only use parchment paper, as all others will cause meringues to stick.
Turn oven on to 150.
If your oven does not go that low, turn it to the lowest setting. You can turn your oven off for an hour, then back on for 5 minutes and then back off again for another hour to maintain a very low temp. and do this until cookies are done.

Cookies should be dried out, not baked and this process goes for maybe 2-3 hours.
If the meringues start to turn brown on the edges, your oven is too hot and you should turn off the heat and crack the oven door open.

Your cookies should turn out the color of honey, but a lighter shade, in an all over even color.
You need to monitor this by taking peeks in at them every half hour.
Meringues can be tempermental.

NUT BUTTER CARAMELS
from Pecan Bread

4 tablespoons coconut oil (or ghee)
1 tsp Stevia
4 teaspoons vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup almond butter

In a saucepan, bring oil or ghee, Stevia, vanilla, salt to the simmer stage and cook for 15 minutes. Add almond butter and stir and simmer five minutes.

Pour into a buttered loaf pan and freeze until just till hard enough to slice with a buttered spatula. Cut them in small squares,wrap in pieces of waxed paper cut to size. Store them in the fridge.
Tip: Use an ice cube tray instead of loaf pan to avoid cutting

PUMPKIN PIE FILLING
from Pecan Bread

2 C cooked pumpkin or butternut squash
3/4 tsp to 1 tsp Stevia
1/4 C. melted coconut oil or ghee
4 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. cloves
2 egg yolks
4 egg whites

1. Puree the squash in the food processor.
2. Mix all ingredients EXCEPT egg whites.
3. Beat egg whites in a separate bowl until stiff.
4. Gently fold egg whites into pumpkin mix.
5. Bake in a pie dish at 350 for ~50 minutes.

PUMPKIN ICE CREAM
from Pecan Bread

6 eggs, separated
1/2 cup cooked, pureed butternut squash or pumpkin
1/4 tsp Stevia or to taste
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/8 tsp. cloves

1. Combine squash, Stevia and spices.
2. Beat yolks with squash mixture.
3. In separate bowl, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form.
4. Fold egg whites into egg yolks.
5. Freeze for 1.5 hrs., mix together to blend and refreeze.

COOKIE-CUTTER COOKIES
adapted from a pie-crust recipe at scdiet.org

3 cups almond flour, firmly packed
1 stick softened ghee: OR Spectrum 100% palm oil organic shortening
1 egg
1/2 - 2/3 tsp Stevia
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Cover a cookie sheet with baking parchment paper. Combine all ingredients thoroughly to make a stiff dough. Chill dough several hours or overnight. Place a ball of dough on the parchment, and cover with another sheet of parchment. Roll out dough between sheets of parchment with a rolling pin, until 3/16" thick. Peel off top sheet of paper.

Using cookie cutters with open centers, cut shapes directly on the parchment-covered cookie sheet. Press firmly. Keep close together as dough does not spread while baking. Bake 5-10 minutes Watch carefully, edges brown quickly. Remove and cool thoroughly to preserve shape before removing from parchment.

Tip: The parchment can be placed on any flat, smooth surface for rolling out the dough, then carefully moved to the cookie sheet either before or after the shapes are cut.

Truffles
from Grain-Free Foodies

Ghee (pastured if possible) or Coconut Oil
Stevia to taste
Cinnamon to taste
Drop of vanilla extract
Almond or Coconut Flour (we are not able to tolerate this yet)

METHOD:

Cream oil with Stevia, then mix in the drop of vanilla and cinnamon to taste. You can add some coconut flour at this point if you want for texture. Without the flour it is a lot like ganache, adding the flour makes it a bit more like cookie dough.

The next step is to roll it into little balls. You may need to refrigerate it for awhile to do this, but it will be tough to do because the heat from your hands will melt the butter a bit. roll the truffles in ground cinnamon.

Put Cinnamon to roll the truffles in into a small bowl. Scoop up a small amount of the butter mixture, briefly roll it in your hands, then drop it into the bowl, and continue rolling it in the bowl. I prefer a ball about 3/4 of an inch across.

Store in the refrigerator when done.

Nut Butter Snow Balls
from Grain-Free Foodies

.

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup almond butter
1/2 cup ground almonds
1/4 tsp Stevia
1 tsp vanilla extract
cinnamon, ground cardamom (optional)
pinch of salt

Combine all ingredients in a medium-sized bowl and mix thoroughly. Test for thickness by forming a ball to see if it holds its shape as desired.

For nut butter balls, pull off a piece of dough and roll into a ball about 1 inch or more across. Roll the ball in chopped almonds and set aside, continue until all the dough is rolled.

These are best stored in the refrigerator.

Almond Butter Muffins
from GAPS Guide

2.5 cups ground almonds
1/4 cup softened fat (ghee, coconut oil, lard)
3 eggs
Stevia to taste

Mix ingredients well. Use more or less ground nuts to achieve porridge-like conisistency. Grease your baking pan. Put mixture in. Bake 300 F for about an hour. When knife comes out clean, the bread is ready.

Coconut Oil Candies
adapted from Kelly the Kitchen Kop

1/2 cup coconut oil
1/2 tsp Stevia
1 tsp vanilla
1/2-1tsp sea salt

Soften coconut oil, mix all ingredients together. Spread into shapes on parchment paper or melt mixture and pour into candy molds.

Bye to the next round

2009-10-21T09:08:00.000-07:00

It always seems to catch me off guard when I’ve snapped at my children, acted frustrated with a phone call that’s interrupted my day or been rude to a stranger. “Why did I do that?” is always usually my first thought. Then a list of rationalities follow: “this has been such a long day; I am so tired; we’re running late; I’m overwhelmed;” etc. Then the list of resolutions start: “I just need to get better about leaving with enough time; when life calms down for us a little then I’ll have more patience; when my kids are older it won’t be so overwhelming, then I’ll be a good mom; etc”

Its amazing how often I think that at the next season of my life is when I’ll start to be able to “work on” the fruits of the spirit: gentleness, patience, kindness, goodness, self-control. I give myself a bye for this season and wait for a “less crazy” season to engage my heart with God.

I looked up the definition of bye: the right to proceed to the next round of a competition without contesting the present round, often through nonappearance of an opponent.

The next round seems so much more important or controllable. I often feel like I have no hope for this round so why even show up. I feel sure that in the next round I’ll have the chance to demonstrate profound faith in God or I have a better opportunity to get it right.

I read this from Oswald Chambers this morning: “It requires the supernatural grace of God to live twenty-four hours of every day as a saint, going through drudgery, and living an ordinary, unnoticed, and ignored existence as a disciple of Jesus. It is ingrained in us that we have to do exceptional things for God—but we do not. We have to be exceptional in the ordinary things of life, and holy on the ordinary streets, among ordinary people—and this is not learned in five minutes.”

I have felt a stirring in my heart over the last couple of weeks that this is the time. It is exactly in the middle of this crazy, busy, overwhelming season that God will be working out the fruits of the spirit. Can you even call it patience if you behave calmly when you were already calm to start out with? I find myself finding a new hope that God is using this season to change me into more of the woman he created me to be. But it requires me to engage with him, to pray for patience in the moment and to confess when I’ve been impatient.

Tough seasons don’t give me a free pass to the next round. This is the round that matters. I want to show up.

Hamburger Buns

2009-10-19T08:13:00.000-07:00

We went out to eat at our favorite burger place: Newstead Tower Pub. They serve grass fed beef burgers and they are the best burgers I've ever had. We get so excited to go there. The boys were excited for two days. When I ordered them each a hamburger the sweet waitress suggested I split one for them because they're so big. "Oh, no they'll finish it off." I told her. Not only did they finish all of their hamburger, roasted veggies and squash chips(I brought the chips) they each probably ate the equivalent of another half from all of our plates. They would have eaten more.

I also enjoyed mine and was so excited because I found this recipe for buns that added to the whole experience. A burger doesn't feel like a burger when you eat it with a fork. It felt like heaven to eat it on a bun and with my homemade ketchup.
Here is the bun recipe (I also made these into hot dog bun shapes for the cookout)

Hamburger/Hot Dog Buns
1/2 a ripe avocado and 1 pastured or free-range egg and a pinch of salt
blend together until smooth and then pan fry like a pancake (these take a long time to set before flipping and work best at a medium-low heat). We use coconut oil on the skillet but you could use lard, ghee, or olive oil.
I added 3 capfulls of vanilla extract, a few drops of Stevia to make them sweet like Newstead Tower Pub buns but I don't usually do this when I make them.
I try to freeze lots of these (6 to a bag) as they are great for anytime we need bread.

Chicken Pancakes

2009-10-19T07:58:00.000-07:00

Pancakes go fast in our house. This one was a good way to use all the scrap pieces of chicken we have after making stock. The boys loved it. I couldn't get over the idea of a pancake tasting like chicken.

1 chicken breast precooked (season as desired)
3 eggs

Using a food processor, blend ingredients together until completely smooth. Mixture will look just like thick pancake batter.
Use 1/4 cup of the mixture and cook in hot greased skillet like a pancake. Batter may need to be spread out a bit so that it is not too thick.
These cook much faster than nut flour pancakes. Watch them closely.
Makes 4-5 pancakes.

Veggie Pancakes

2009-10-19T07:51:00.001-07:00

I am learning you can make any kind of pancake or bread with pureed veggies and eggs. This recipe has become a staple in our house now:

Pumpkin Pancakes

4 pastured or free-range organic eggs
1 cup squash (or any other pureed vegetable...we've used spinach, kale, zucchini, pumpkin, butternut)
1 tsp Cinnamon
1 tsp alcohol-free vanilla
1 TBL melted coconut oil or ghee

Mix all ingredients well and prepare as small pancakes. Use a medium-low heat (between 3 and 4 on my stove). It takes a while for each pancake to set (4-5 min). Watch for bubbles on the top. They are thin and very yummy, almost like a crepe. We fill them sometimes with avocado or cooked spinach.

Veggie Chicken Salad

2009-10-18T13:22:00.001-07:00

I am in the process of trying to make my own mayo so I can have chicken salad but my first attempt did not go over well...it was pretty gross. Anyone know of a good mayo recipe?

In the mean time I made Cilantro-Lime Chicken Salad for Brian and me for lunch. It was awesome!!!!

For the kids I made:
Veggie Chicken Salad

Grind cooked chicken til fine. (this is a great way to use the scrap pieces of chicken) (I ground it in my magic bullet in lots of small batches)
Add mixture of pureed zucchini and carrots or any left over vegetable(somehow the flavors seem to cancel each other out).
Add salt.
Add boiled egg (optional)
Add chopped fermented cucumbers (pickles) (optional)
By gradually increasing the veggies, you can make it with almost half veggies
I added a lot of seasonings to help this one out (curry, paprika, garlic, ground mustard)

It went over very well.

Squash mini muffins

2009-10-17T06:05:00.000-07:00

Another recipe for freezing and packing

4 pastured or free-range organic eggs seperated
1 cooked acorn squash or 1/2 cooked large butternut squash (1 1/2-2cups) (this also works with pumpkin or really any pureed veggie) (the easiest way to cook the squash is to put it whole in the oven at 350 for 45-60 min, then cut and discard seeds, scoop out flesh for recipe)
1 TBS of Coconut Oil or ghee (optional)
1 TSP of Cinnamon.
4-5 drops of Stevia (optional)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Grease a mini-muffin tin or use small muffin cups. Combine egg yolks with all other ingredients in a food processor or blender and process just until smooth. Beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Stir egg whites into mixture. Spoon into muffin cups.
Bake 30 to 40 minutes until muffins pull away from the sides of the
pan and appear dry and browned around the edges.
Carefully cut around the edges and lift out.

Homemade Ketchup

2009-10-17T05:41:00.000-07:00

We had another camp fire in the backyard last night and I wanted the boys to be able to have ketchup this time. I was very proud of my homemade ketchup. It wasn't that much work and it tastes great. I think this is a recipe anyone could do and if you're wanting to start eliminating sugar or vegetable oils from your house, this would be a great place to start.

Homemade Ketchup

5 lbs. very ripe tomatoes
1/2 c. white vinegar
1 tbsp. salt
1/4 c. sugar (I used a little more than 1/4tsp. of Stevia)
2 cloves garlic
1/2 c. onion
1 tbsp. black peppercorns
1/4 tsp. ground allspice
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
6 cloves

Stem and roughly chop the tomatoes and place them in a nonreactive pan.
Add half the vinegar and a few pinches of the salt and bring the mixture to a boil.
Cook for 5 minutes, mashing with a wooden spoon.
Strain the liquid into a saucepan without pressing on the solids (this may be obvious to others, but was not to me...use a very fine wire strainer-not a colander).
Press the solids into another saucepan by forcing them through the strainer, leaving the seeds and skins behind. Rinse the strainer. You can puree the tomatoes before straining, if necessary, but they should be soft enough to press through the strainer screen
Stir the sugar into the solids.
Add all the remaining ingredients to the liquid.
Bring the liquid to a simmer and cook for about 20 minutes, until very syrupy.
Strain into the solids, and bring to a simmer, stirring well. Simmer for 5 more minutes or until the desired consistency is reached. (it took about an hour of simmering for it to be as thick as I wanted) Puree with a hand blender, food processor or blender if necessary.
Taste and adjust the seasonings. The mixture should be sweet and faintly tangy; if more tanginess is needed, sprinkle in some vinegar.

Joy in the journey

2009-10-17T05:17:00.000-07:00

I have little joy right now. One of the main reasons is because my boys have such little joy. Yesterday was a particularly hard morning. Tyler wouldn't talk to anyone (my dad and step-mom are here) and he was falling apart at everything. Grayson, too, was very fussy and melting at the drop of a hat. I made 5 new recipes yesterday and had a pretty bad stomach ache most of the afternoon.

The ironic thing is I started my morning out in God's Word with motivation to rely on God's strength and desire to "make it a good day." I read a devotional about finding joy in your relationship with God and I was struck by the opportunity I have to commune with him in the midst of this trial and struggle. But, I was impatient and crabby and moody and not pleasant to be around. Not exactly on the road to make it a good day.

But, then the afternoon came. My sweet dad came home with a precious little plaque as a surprise present for me. He could tell I needed something. And, my step-mom spent the rest of the afternoon/evening in the kitchen washing dishes as I dirtied them up. We put on music and danced and talked. Even if we were quiet, it was so wonderful just to have someone in the kitchen with me. I really found joy in the community of my family.

This morning I made the connection. I AM NOT ALONE. As I stand in the kitchen for hours, God is present. And, HE CARES. I often think this much life is so trivial that I can only commune with God on the big things. I read this from Oswald Chambers this morning:

"Wherever God has placed you and whatever your circumstances, you should pray, continually offering up prayers to Him. And He promises, "Whatever you ask in My name, that I will do . . ." (John 14:13 ). Yet we refuse to pray unless it thrills or excites us, which is the most intense form of spiritual selfishness. We must learn to work according to God’s direction, and He says to pray."

Pray. Commune with God. That is the end...not the means to the end. I get so focused on when we are going to all feel better, be healed. That is what I want to pray for...and I should pray for that but I can not let the healing be my love. Jesus is my love and it is possible to find joy in journeying with him.

Quiche Muffins

2009-10-16T08:03:00.000-07:00

I am on the search for recipes that are freezable and portable. I found this yesterday and I've tried it twice. They came different each time. I'm not sure why yet, but both times were good.

Quiche Muffins

3-5 eggs
1/2-1 cup of green puree (boiled spinach, collard greens, kale, etc. pureed)
salt
2 Tbsp. of coconut oil
spices of choice

Blend together. Line muffin tins. Bake 350 for 20-30 min.
They boys loved these!!

Culinary Victory and GI defeat

2009-10-16T07:40:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful dinner last night. I felt so proud of my culinary efforts and we all enjoyed our dinner...except for Tyler who doesn't enjoy much of anything these days. I felt very empowered in the kitchen but then quickly defeated when I changed Gray's diaper. He has been having normal BMs for the past few days which was a sign the diet was working. Yesterday he went back to the undigested runny poopies, there was actually a whole green bean in his diaper. (Sorry if that's too much info). This means I need to go slower with progressing through the stages of the diet and that I need to back up with him to figure out what triggered the diarrhea. I have a feeling it was almonds which will be a big bummer trying to figure out how to make any type of baked good without almond flour.

Here is what we had for dinner:

Roasted Red Pepper & Tomato Soup in Acorn Squash Bowls

4-6 Red Peppers, cut in half with stems removed
1 Large Tomato, cut in quarters
3-4 cups of chicken stock
1 medium onion
2 Tb. of oil for skillet (coconut or ghee is what we used)
2 Tbsp. tomato paste
1-2 Tb. Thyme
4 Bay leaves
ground pepper
garlic powder
sea salt
Acorn squash (1 for every 2 people)

Preheat oven to 350. Place acorn squash on baking sheet, whole. Place peppers and tomatoes on a non-stick pan, cut side down. Bake peppers and tomatoes in oven until skin starts to blacken and blister, about 20-30 min. Remove peppers, place in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let cool for 15 min. Bake squash for about 45-60 min.

Meanwhile, in a stockpot, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and saute unitl translucent. Add the chicken stock and all of the spices and tomato paste . Bring to a gentle boil.

Remove as much skin from peppers as possible. Add to the pot. Use an immersion blender to puree the soup.

Remove squash from oven. Cut in half, scoop out seeds. Put squash in a bowl. Pour soup in squash. Top with fresh basil and/or grated cheese.

Green Bean Salad with Balsamic Dressing

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar (not GAPS legal)
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
4 large shallots, minced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon brown sugar (I used 4-5 drops of Stevia)
1 teaspoon seasoned pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup olive oil
2 lbs of green beans

1. Whisk together balsamic vinegar (not GAPS legal)and next 6 ingredients in a small bowl until blended; gradually add olive oil, whisking constantly until blended.

2. Pour over washed and trimmed green beans in a casserole dish. Bake, covered, for 20-30 min.

3. Serve over fresh greens and sprinkle with pine nuts.

S'Mores

2009-10-13T12:47:00.000-07:00

We had a campfire last weekend in our backyard so I wanted to make it as authentic for the boys as possible. I found the following recipe for graham crackers. I substituted Stevia for the honey (we'll be able to do honey later, just not right now). I also left out the baking powder. They turned out pretty good. For marshmallow I beat egg whites until fluffy and added Stevia. For the chocolate I melted coconut oil with vanilla, salt, stevia & cocoa powder (not legal on GAPS but I felt a necessary exception). I was pretty proud of myself. The boys gobbled them up.

Here is the recipe for graham crackers:

Ingredients

3 cups almond flour
1/2 cup honey
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Instructions

1. Blend honey, eggs, spices, & baking soda. Add almond flour and mix well.

2. Take cookie size servings and smash them onto a cookie sheet to a ¼ inch thickness I use a Silicone cookie sheet liner. Leave a little room between crackers as they will puff a little bit and you will need room to maneuver flip them.

3. Bake in 325F oven for about 9 minutes.

4. Turn crackers over, and bake again for about 9 minutes.

5. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Even better if you can stand to wait until the next day to let spices really penetrate.

6. If a really crisp cracker is desired, re-warm cooled crackers in a low oven (150F) or in a dehydrator set on maximum for about 2 hours, then store.

I'm not alone

2009-10-12T19:53:00.000-07:00

Today was a good day. I made up a butternut squash pancake recipe from some other bloggers ideas and they were pretty good. The kids gobbled them up this morning and they were a great snack to send to school. It makes such a difference when they are excited about what they're eating. I cleaned the house this morning which felt good to do something that produced a result...at least until lunch when it was all dirty again. I had plans for many more things in the afternoon but I was completely exhausted. It hits me like a ton of bricks. One moment I'll think I can keep going and then the next minute its all I can do to get up the stairs and make it to my bed. This is one of the hardest parts. I need to keep cooking and finding recipes but I am just soo soo tired.

Afternoon and dinner was the highlight. Tyler was so pleasant when I picked him up from school and they played well together while I got dinner together. We have moved passed the stage of having to boil all our meats and veggies and can now eat things baked and roasted. This is huge. We had roasted salmon, asparagus and butternut squash/carrot potatoes. You can not believe how much the kids ate. They asked for thirds of everything. We finished off everything and Brian didn't even eat with us tonight. No left overs for tomorrow which means I'll have to cook something new for lunch.

The thing that has made the last 24 hours so wonderful is the various friends that I've talked to who are wanting to learn and try some of these things we're doing. I can't tell you how encouraging this is to me. Of all the things that are so hard with this transition (how crappy I feel, how new everything is, how much I have to learn, how much I miss certain foods, how much time it takes to cook everything) the two hardest things are how hard it is to tell my boys no and how alone I feel.

I am thankful for the yahoo group I am a part of and the blogs of other people on GAPS but it is no where near the same as people in your community going through something with you. Even in my marriage it has been hard because Brian doesn't understand everything as much and its hard for him to see all of us go through this. Cooking and eating has always been something we enjoy doing together. Brian has always shared a lot of the daily cooking with me. Now, I do it all and we miss the joy of doing stuff together. We had a wonderful talk this weekend about ways he can join me and he reassured me that he is on my team and he does believe in this diet. While we were talking I cried as I told him how great it would be if he (or anyone) called me up one day and said, "Hey, I was trying ____ and it turned out great" or "I read _____ the other day and found out _____." Does that make sense? Its like when you're a new mom and all you want to talk to is other moms because you need to hear ideas, be heard, ask questions. I have felt like I'm a new mom in a land of people that don't have children.

The awesome thing is, I feel like God heard my cry and answered me with a quick "You are not alone." In less than 24 hours, I had multiple conversations with people all wanting to start some part of our lifestyle. I understand it will be rare that someone would jump into full GAPS but just having someone to share learning how to culture vegetables together would be awesome.

Over the next few days I'm going to try to post all the different lifestyle changes we're making. I don't expect anyone to want to do them all but maybe having some friends/family picking one area to join me. Here are the areas I'm thinking :

switching to local, organic meats/eggs
culturing vegetables
making Kombucha tea
making more foods from scratch (Bread, nut-butters, condiments, salad dressings, yogurt, kiefer, crackers, bone stock, etc.) and reducing processed foods
cutting or reducing sugar
eating an 80/20 diet (80% of diet fruits and veggies/20% meat and grains)
detoxing the home (cleaners, detergents, soaps, perfumes, etc.)
cooking with traditional and healthy oils and fats (butter instead of margarine, olive oil instead of canola, eliminating soy and vegetable oils, using coconut oil, etc)

If any of these areas seem interesting to you, please keep checking the blog. I'll share what I've learned and resources I've found and I would love to hear from you as you learn along with me.

Victory and Defeat

2009-10-11T20:14:00.000-07:00

Those are the two words I keep saying to myself. In one moment I'll experience victory and then in the very next moment: defeat. But, the opposite is also true. When I feel defeated there will be a moment of victory that gives hope. Its been a long week. The boys are still recouping from the stomach virus. Gray didn't start walking until Wednesday. Before that he wanted me to carry him everywhere. When you put him down on the ground he'd stand there for a minute and then lie down on the floor. He went to school that day because he wanted to. The teachers said he pulled up a chair in the middle of the floor and just watched the other kids play. It was so hard to see him not himself. Tyler has been just so sad. He says he has no cool toys, no cool books, there is nothing fun at school, etc. I'm not sure how much of this is the virus still hanging around or because of the diet.

I've read more about the "die off" reaction. Its also called the healing crisis. I belong to a yahoo group where people post questions and talk a lot about die off reactions. On one hand, its been sobering to read how long it takes some families to level out. But, on the other hand it helpful to realize that it will probably be awhile before we feel great. This way I'm not thinking, "is this the day/week we're going to feel better." I think it will be helpful for others to see, too, that this is something we're in for the long haul.

Here is the best info I've found on what to expect from the healing crisis:
from Healing Naturally by Bee

"The healing crisis is an acute reaction that is the result of the activity of nature's healing forces in overcoming chronic disease conditions. It is brought about when the body becomes overcrowded by wastes and toxins. Cells and tissues begin to throw off the waste and carry it from the bloodstream to various eliminating organs including the bowels, kidneys, lungs, skin, nasal passages, ears, throat, and genital organs.

These organs, in turn, become congested and irritated, producing symptoms such as colds, flue, boils, skin problems (rash, eczema, psoriasis, rosacea, etc.), kidney and bladder infection, headaches, ear or eye infection, diarrhea and/or constipation, and fever, to name a few.

That is the healing crisis, which is a form of healing and elimination. First the toxins are removed and then the tissues are renewed. These symptoms and the process of elimination are part of the cure and should not be suppressed. Although a healing and disease crisis may look alike they are very different.

By changing the diet to a highly nutritious one, and by eliminating as many sources of damaging substances as possible, i.e. sugar, soy, grains, chemicals, mycotoxins, preservatives, molds, etc. the body gets stronger, digging into the tissues and eliminating old chronic waste and toxins.

Skin problems occur because of toxins being eliminated through the skin, but also because the body externalizes healing to the skin to protect vital inner organs.

It takes about one month of natural healing for every year the symptoms have been present. (this was the most sobering thing for me to read...it could take me 20 months! and probably 3 months for the boys)

When you change your diet, particularly when you eliminate foods and toxins that feed candida, candida starts dying off. As a result the reactions and symptoms you will experience are called Die-Off Symptoms. Therefore when the numbers of candida begin to decrease (are dying off) you will feel the effects, which causes many symptoms and reactions, which are mainly due to the high numbers of toxins that are being released.

Withdrawal Symptoms are some of the reactions you will experience. That is when your cravings for sugar, carbohydrates, alcohol, grain products, etc. will increase. At times it may make you feel as if you are starving, when you actually aren't.

Cleansing/Detoxifying Reactions - "Die-off" symptoms include cleansing/detoxifying reactions, which produce "flu-like" symptoms. This is because the body is trying to deal with the large numbers of toxins being released by the dead candida. This will results in excessive mucus being produced in the mucus membranes, which include sinuses, nose, throat, lungs, the digestive tract, reproductive organs, etc.

These flu-like symptoms may also include an upset stomach, nausea, gas, bloating, belching, muscle and joint aches and pains, clumsiness, headaches, "brain fog," etc. Often you may feel like you have been drugged, with symptoms similar to a bad hangover. That is because most candida toxins are alcohol, which cause hangover-type symptoms. (this describes perfectly how I've felt)

"Die-off" symptoms are also called the Herxheimer reaction, which is caused by the rapid killing of candida and other harmful pathogens, with large quantities of toxins and cell particles being released into the bloodstream and the entire body.

Healing Reactions – In addition to withdrawal symptoms and cleansing reactions you will experience symptoms that are clearly healing reactions. The severity and/or number of healing reactions you experience depends upon how often your body has been exposed to toxins and/or traumatized during your lifetime with injuries, disease, or illnesses, and how much detoxifying and healing the body can accomplish.

To help you "endure" these reactions and continue with your program, keep in mind that any reactions means you are successful in ridding your body of candida, other toxins, heavy metals, etc., and that "healing" is taking place. Every drugless healing practitioner is well aware of such healing reactions.

Symptoms Intensify - When high numbers of candida are being killed off, any symptoms experienced while candida was growing out of control may intensify. This is different person to person, depending upon areas of their body that were most affected by candida overgrowth.

If someone has experienced a lot of digestive problems, their digestive upsets and disturbances will increase. If someone had a lot of head-related symptoms, their symptoms will become worse. And so on. (this is what I think is happening with Tyler and his behaviors)

Symptoms do get worse before they get better. However, as you progress on the program, your good days will increase and your bad days will decrease. Natural healing takes time, patience and persistence on the healing program"

There are things we can do to try to ease the die off reaction. One is to go slowly into changes which we are doing with things like adding supplements, vitamins, and the probiotics. Adding each of those things brings more healing. I want to add them all in at once but I keep reading to go slow, slow, slow. That's very hard for me. I want to get it over with and see results. It can be very discouraging to be going through this much work and feel worse. Not to mention it is very hard to cook for at least 3 hours a day when I feel so tired I can hardly stand up at times.

So, forgive me if I sound like things are great one time when you talk to me and then horrible the next. It depends on the minute. We sang my favorite hymn today at church, "It is well." I am praying that I would find security in who God is and how he sees me in the moments of victory and defeat.

On or off the Wagon? Where the hell is the wagon?

2009-10-02T15:27:00.000-07:00

I don't know what day to call this post. I have totally lost track of where we're at on the diet. We started the kids on Monday this week and Tyler started throwing up that night. I thought it was a die off reaction but turns out it was a viral infection. We have been in the hospital with Grayson since Wednesday night because of dehydration. I am praying they will come in and tell us we can go home...I'm also praying for a wet diaper. I really don't want to spend another night here.

I have pretty much stayed on the wagon. I've had a few things that have strayed from the diet only because its pretty hard to have organic, home cooked food for three days in a hospital.

I feel a little discouraged about the diet with the kids. The virus messed us all up. Tyler now thinks that its the new way of eating that made him throw up. He won't even drink the stock any more which is something he's been drinking and even asking for with enthusiasm for weeks now. He is resistant to everything, even very normal foods like meats and vegetables. He gags when we make him eat something.

I'm not sure where Gray is on his attitude toward eating the diet. Right now he doesn't want to eat even apple sauce. I wish I had waited one more day to start the diet, then we would be starting next Monday and no one would be associating this food with being sick.

Just found out we get to go home!!! I am so excited to sleep in my bed and cuddle on the couch with Brian.

If you'll notice I have about 30 posts from the last 2 days. I've been cataloging recipes I've tried and found on-line to organize myself. You can find all the recipes organized by clicking the recipe option to the right top of the blog.

or go HERE to see my recipe list

Cream of Vegetable Soup

2009-10-02T11:15:00.001-07:00

simmer equal parts chopped carrots, rutabaga, onion, zucchini and fresh thyme in chicken stock.
Remove thyme stem
puree and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Veggie Minestrone

2009-10-02T11:12:00.000-07:00

Found this on GAPS group site

Broth (combination is good) simmered with celery and peppercorns
zucchini or summer squash
carrot
green beans
onion and/ or leek
tomato
salt

Season with thyme, basil, garlic and dash of cayenne. Add chicken fat/olive oil/ghee as permitted.
It's more work, but it adds visual interest if you cook each veggie separately and arrange a small helping of each around the bowl before filling with broth.

Beef and Pumpkin Stew

2009-10-02T11:10:00.000-07:00

Found this on a GAPS group site

Beef broth seasoned with peppercorns and strained.
Add small diced pumpkin and salt and cook until soft.
Add diced, shredded beef and pumpkin puree.
Use a bit of chicken fat to balance the flavors.

Serve with the obligatory dash of fresh garlic and kraut liquid. This is also wonderful with a swirl of blended kefir (sour cream mimic if you pour a circle you can then make awesome designs by dragging a knife through in an X.)

Mashed "Too-tatoes"

2009-10-02T11:03:00.001-07:00

We do these instead of mashed potatoes and I've never told the kids their not real potatoes. They love them!

1 head of cauliflower (cut all stocks off if one stage one until you know you can digest)
about 1 cup of chicken stock
lard or ghee (if at that stage)

Boil cauliflower in the chicken stock. Use a slotted spoon to remove to a bowl. Mix with electric mixer, add more stock to desired consistency. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Big Kid's Casserole

2009-10-02T10:49:00.000-07:00

Put a layer of leftover roast in the bottom of the casserole dish. I cut the roast into small pieces.
Cook green beans in one pot with some chicken broth and sea salt and layered these over the meat.
Cook carrots, zucchini, and yellow squash in another pot with just water and sea salt. I took about half of these and layered them over the green beans.
Pour a little broth and about a cup of rendered beef fat over this and sprinkled with a little salt.
Puree the rest of the carrots, zucchini, and yellow squash with some of the broth and pour this over the top of the casserole and drizzled more beef fat on top. Then add a touch more salt on top.
Bake it at 350 F for 30 minutes. That’s it!

you can also do this with:

Meat
Green beans
Broccoli and cauliflower
Rendered fat and sea salt
Blended cauliflower drizzled with more rendered fat and sprinkled with sea salt

Melt-In-Your-Mouth Beef Soup

2009-10-02T10:42:00.000-07:00

Recipe from GAPSters

Full fat, hugely gelatinous beef broth
1 lb beef
2 med zucchini
1 med onion
2 cloves garlic
4 carrots
Celtic Sea Salt
Ghee

Simmer the beef, garlic and onion in some broth for about 30 min. Add prepped vegetables and enough broth to come within 2" of the vegetables. Add 2 larges pinches of celtic sea salt and simmer about 30 min. Take 1/4 of the vegetable and meat and blend till smooth. Add back into the pot and add ghee and more salt to taste. And yes!!! Add 1-3 tsp avocado (if on stage 3)

soaking and dehydrating almonds

2009-10-02T10:41:00.001-07:00

On our GAPS diet we are not supposed to eat any starches or grains. This is part of the reason I picked this diet. I have always seemed to have a hard time digesting grains. I've been tested for Celiac's disease (gluten intolerance) but I do not have it. The doctors have often questioned if Grayson might have it and the OT questioned if Tyler might as well. So, this diet is a good way to eliminate that from our diet and see if symptoms improve.

But what do we do without grains?

Almonds. There are many recipes made from almond butter and almond flour. The first step is to soak the almonds to make them easier to digest.

Why soak almonds?

Almonds are usually difficult for most people to digest because of an enzyme-inhibiting substance in their brown coating. Soaking or sprouting removes this inhibitor so that the enzymes secreted during digestion can do their job. It is easier to digest, absorb and assimilate the nutrition in the nut. Also the nuts become softer, making them easier to chew. This adds to the effect. Always chew nuts thoroughly, whether soaked or not. Big chunks of unchewed nuts can be hard on the digestive tract.

What do you do with soaked almonds?

Almond Milk: Use an ounce of ground, blanched almonds and a quart of water (you can also simply add ground blanched almonds and some sugar to water until you achieve the preferred consistency) This shares many characteristics of cow milk and makes a delicious refreshing beverage.

Almonds can also be used to relieve heartburn. Dosage is six to eight soaked, blanched almonds.

Almond butter is made by grinding the soaked, blanched almonds and is far healthier than peanut butter. This is a nutritional and delicious alternative for adults and children alike.

Almond flour is made by dehydrating the soaked, blanched almonds then grinding them into a flour like substance. Almond flour is used in many GAPS recipes.

Snacks: soak, blanch, then dry almonds and store in the refrigerator for a snack anytime. They combine best with fermented foods, non-starchy land vegetables (especially dark green leafy ones) and ocean vegetables. They also combine with other protein/fat foods like milk kefir and avocado.

They're great to toss into a green, leafy salad.

What are the best almonds to get?

If possible almonds should be purchased in their shell. This helps to ensure that your almonds are fresh and not rancid. Almonds should be raw and organic.

How do you soak?

Soak 4 cups of raw, organic almonds in cool filtered water and drain the soaked water after 20-40 minutes. (optional step)
Dissolve 1 Tbsp of sea salt in filtered water and pour over almonds (I use a mason jar).
soak for another 8-12 hours. If you want to continue and sprout them you can (they make one of the best sprouts) though it is not essential.
Drain and refridgerate

One website I looked at encouraged to buy skinless almonds. "If almonds are not skinless and given that the almond skin is potentially irritating to the lining of the stomach and intestines the almonds should be blanched" (I assume following the soaking). Some people say the skins easily peel off after soaking. If not easy for you do the following:

To blanch almonds:

1. Place the soaked almonds in a saucepan of boiling water.
2. Time seven (7) seconds.
3. Immediately remove from heat.
4. Drain and cover almonds with cold water to cool.
5. Press each almond between thumb and forefinger to slip off skin.
6. Dry almonds on paper towels.
You can also try blanching them in warm water (15-30 seconds in hot water from faucet.)

My nutrionalist friend reminded me that the fiber from almonds is in the skin. We are needing fiber right now so we are not blanching.

To Further protect the almonds from the effect of rancidity and enhance digestion lightly toast the almonds in an oven.

Here's how you toast almonds:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
In a low sided pan, evenly spread nuts.
Bake, stirring occasionally, for 5 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned.
Oven toasted nuts are done when you can smell them.
All nuts should be cooled on paper towels.

Some people would say that the high heat will loose some of the nutrients and you should use a dehydrator of low heat of oven.

To Dry Almonds:

drain in a colander and spread on a stainless steel pan .
Place in a warm oven (no warmer than 150 degrees) for 12-24 hours, turning occasionally, until thoroughly dry and crisp.

To Make Almond Butter:

mix almonds in food processor or blender.
It will take approximately 10 minutes to release the oils from the almonds to make a paste
Keep scraping the sides of the bowl

To Make Almond Flour:

I am grinding in my magic bullet right now because that's all I have. I think it would work better in a mill.

Nut Butter Pancakes

2009-10-02T10:38:00.000-07:00

From the blog GAPSters

2 medium zucchini--peeled, de-seeded, blended
8 eggs
1/2 cup almond nut-butter--made from soaked and dehydrated almonds
pinch Celtic sea salt

In a food processor, blend zucchini. Add the rest of the ingredients and blend well. Heat a fry pan and add ghee. Pour enough batter in the pan to make pancakes a little larger than 'silver dollar' pancake size.

FYI: The heat needed to be lower than I expected--on my electric stove I set the heat between 3 and 4.

Butternut Squash Ice Cream

2009-10-02T10:31:00.000-07:00

Found this at GAPSters

1 butternut squash
stock of your choice
3-5 Tblsp ghee
3 egg yolks

Boil the squash in the stock. When done (almost falling apart), remove from stock and cool. Add ghee and egg yolks. Blend. At this point you could put the mixture in an ice cream maker or you could put it directly into the freezer and stir it every 30 minutes or so--until it's frozen, but aerated and fluffy.

Pork Stew

2009-10-02T09:44:00.000-07:00

Already boiled pork to pork stock in a crock pot.
Add zucchini, summer squash, mushrooms and carrots.
Add salt.
Simmer for a few hours.
Remove meat, blend most vegetables with immersion blender
Add meat in pieces.

Chicken Salad

2009-10-02T09:42:00.000-07:00

Found this recipe at GAPSters

Chicken, boiled and torn into bite sized pieces
Pesto Sauce
Fermented vegetables
Celtic sea salt, to taste

In a large bowl, combine chicken and enough pesto sauce to coat chicken. Add fermented vegetables--as much as you're allowed. Mix. Add salt if needed. Serve topped with extra pesto sauce.

Beef and Eggplant Casserole

2009-10-02T09:38:00.000-07:00

I found this recipe at GAPSters

1 lb ground beef
2 eggplants
2 containers of mushrooms
2 leeks or 1 med. onion
Fresh dill
Celtic Sea Salt to taste
ghee

Prep vegetables (peel, de-seed, chop). Add beef and onion (if using) to some stock and boil for 40 min or so. Add rest of vegetables and boil for 30 min or so. Add salt to taste. With a slotted spoon, ladle out meat and vegetable and put into a baking dish. Add chopped fresh dill. Add some stock. Either bake like this or reserve some vegetables and meat, blend, and spread on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Add ghee to individual dishes.

Beets-for constipation

2009-10-02T09:35:00.001-07:00

We have been struggling with a little constipation in our house. I found this idea at GAPSters

Beets! Yes, fresh, cooked beets have a mild laxative effect.

Here's what to do: cut the leaves off the beetroot about an inch above the crown. Immerse the beets in a pot of water. Cover. Bring water to a boil, turn down to simmer. Simmer for about 40 minutes, or until tender. Drain, rinse in cold water. With cold water running, hold beet under water and slip off the skins. Place beet in a clean bowl. Eat warm or cold.

Butternut Squash and Fennel Soup

2009-10-02T09:29:00.000-07:00

I found this recipe at GAPSters

1 butternut squash
3-4 fennel bulbs
2 large leeks
1 large zucchini (this will dilute the sweetness)
1/2 cup beef fat/marrow blend
Celtic Sea Salt to taste

Peel, de-seed, wash--prep your vegetables to where they're chopped and ready to go. Throw them in a pot, add stock so that 2" of your vegetables are not immersed. Bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer for 30+ minutes. Because the fennel would be considered 'stringy,' simmer for an hour and a half or more. When done, take off heat, add fat/marrow, salt and blend.

TIP: The beauty of this soup is that it contains vast amounts of vegetables, broth. I blend in raw egg yolks and the flavor remains delicious. With the zucchini added, the sweetness becomes subtle.

Non-Nut Butter Pancake Sandwiches

2009-10-02T09:24:00.000-07:00

I found this recipe at GAPSters

A stage 3 recipe.

Makes one sandwich.

2 Non-Nut Butter Pancakes

1 avocado

1 tsp shredded fermented vegetable, or as much as can be tolerated

Celtic sea salt

Put fruit from avocado in a bowl. Sprinkle salt to taste. Mash avocado and salt together with a fork, making a salt/avocado-only guacamole. Spread 2 tablespoons or so (depending on the size of the pancakes) on one of the pancakes. Sprinkle on the fermented vegetable. Top with remaining pancake. Slice into wedges and you've got finger food!

Carrot Coins and "Cheese"

2009-10-02T09:20:00.000-07:00

This recipe is from GAPSters

A stage 2 snack.

1 thick (as thick as possible) carrot, peeled, cut into 1/4" 'coins'

Bone broth

Ghee, slightly softened

Boil carrot coins in bone broth for 30 minutes or until cooked through. Let cool completely. When cool, spread ghee on top. Serve.

Orange Popscicles

2009-10-02T09:16:00.000-07:00

This recipe is adapted from GAPSters

An all stages snack.

You'll need a popsicle mold.

1 butternut squash, boiled in bone broth and puréed or 2 cups of baby carrots

5 Tblsp ghee

raw egg yolks

2-3 drops of Stevia (optional)

Place butternut squash in a bowl. Add ghee and as many yolks as desired and blend until smooth. Pour or spoon into mold(s) and freeze.

Mint Tea Popscicles

2009-10-02T09:11:00.000-07:00

This recipe is from GAPSters

An all stages snack.

Make a batch of mint tea, adding honey to sweeten a tad more than you'd use for hot tea.

Let cool. Pour into popsicle mold(s). Enjoy between meals.

Mint Tea

2009-10-02T09:09:00.000-07:00

This recipe if from GAPSters

Using Dried Mint:

Harvest or purchase fresh mint. Lay the mint on a tray and put the tray in the oven with the oven light on. Let sit for 4-6 hours, or until the mint is crisp, but not fragile (in other words, doesn't fall to pieces when pinched but is dry and 'crisp').

Boil water.

Use 1 tsp dried mint per cup of water. For a quart of water, use 4 tsp dried mint and either add the mint and water to a quart jar and cap tightly OR add mint to a pot containing a quart of boiling water and cover tightly. Let steep about 3 minutes. Add honey if desired.

Using Fresh Mint:

Use a handful of the leaves and stalks to a cup of boiling water. Brew for about five minutes, and add honey if desired. Using fresh mint for tea making will add a distinct 'cooked greens' flavor to your tea.

If your tea tastes bitter, it was brewed too long or too much herb was used.

ANOTHER WAY TO MAKE MINT TEA:

MINT HONEY

Gather fresh mint and coarsely chop the leaves. Place the chopped mint leaves in a jar, filling the jar (if there is any empty space, the herb will oxidize). Then pour raw, local honey over the chopped, fresh herb. Use a chopstick or the like to poke and stir, essentially eliminating all air bubbles. Add honey until the jar is almost full. Label your MINT HONEY with name and date.

Leave your jar in a cool, dark place for 6 weeks, after which, it's ready to use. You'll find that the honey seems a little watery. This is because it's now infused with oils, liquids and all properties of the mint leaves.

Put a heaping tablespoonful, honey and herb, in 1 cup or more of boiling hot water. Stir and let it brew for a few minutes. While it's brewing, either cover your mug or inhale the invigorating mint steam! Strain and drink.

You'll find this way of preparation perfectly flavored with mint and nicely sweetened with honey. You can use more herb than honey, if you are using honey minimally. Or you can just stir in a little honey without the herb since the honey now has the medicinal qualities and flavor of the mint. Depending on your desired outcome, the amount of honey per the amount of water is flexible.

TIP: Mint tea and Mint Honey are wonderful when a cold is present. In the same way, make Thyme Honey and Sage Honey, which are excellent for sore throats.

Orange-colored "jello"

2009-10-02T08:55:00.001-07:00

An all stages snack.

Butternut squash and/or carrots

Bone broth

Boil butternut squash and/or carrots in bone broth. With a slotted spoon, remove the vegetable. Purée. Add an amount of broth back into the puréed vegetable to make it pourable. Pour into small bowls or ramekins. Refrigerate. Stir before serving and serve cold.

Soft Boiled Eggs and Egg Salad

2009-10-02T08:45:00.000-07:00

I got this recipe from GAPSters

Put eggs in a pot and cover with water. Set on the stove, cover, bring to a boil. While waiting for boil, put a large pat of ghee in a bowl. When eggs begin to boil, take them off heat and let sit 2-3 minutes. Drain, fill pot with cold water. Peel eggs quickly and place them in the bowl with ghee. When all eggs are peeled, add Celtic sea salt and mash with a fork.

These are soft-boiled, with whites firm and yolks runny. Delicious, creamy buttery eggs. Flavor kind of reminds me of pasta with butter.

Now for egg salad:

Add chopped fermented cucumber pickles, or any fermented vegetable

Add chopped avocado

Mix.

Making Lard

2009-10-02T07:38:00.000-07:00

Pork, lamb or beef fat (lard) from an animal that is pasture fed is a great source of fat for cooking. I purchased our pork fat from Greenwood Farms at the Tower Grove Farmers Market. Here are some of the benefits of using saturated fats like lard/tallow:

Enhance the immune system
Build and strengthen bones and teeth (preventing cavities and osteoporosis)
Provide energy and structural integrity to the cells
Protect the liver
Enhance the body’s use of essential fatty acids
Do not become rancid easily
Do not call upon the body’s reserves of antioxidants
Do not initiate cancer
Do not irritate the artery walls

Source: The Oiling of America

How to make it

Cut the fat into small-medium sized chunks or put through meat grinder
Put in crock-pot on low
cook for several hours (depending on size of chunks) until mostly melted
pour through cheese-sloth or fine metal sieve.
store in glass jars and refridgerate

Find pictures and more details at Kelly The Kitchen Kop

Even more details at Cheeseslave

How to make lard/tallow

Recipe for making Ghee (clarified butter)

2009-10-02T07:33:00.000-07:00

Butter is great for cooking but small amounts of whey in the butter often burn. Butter also contains lactose and some milk proteins which may bother many people. Ghee on the other hand does not contain any whey, milk protein or lactose at all, just milk fat, and does not burn.

Preheat your oven to 250
Put a large block of organic, preferably unsalted butter into a metal dish or pan.
Leave in the oven for 45-60 minutes
Take it out and carefully pour the golden fat from the top (ghee), making sure that the white liquid at the bottom stays in the pan.
Discard the white liquid.
Keep in glass jars and refrigerate.

Winter Squash Soup

2009-10-02T07:26:00.000-07:00

Very, very yummy and soothing to an upset stomach or diarrhea.

6 cups of home-made meat stock
1 leak, washed and sliced
broccoli, 3-4 medium sized rosettes
1 medium-size carrot, sliced
1 medium size butternut squash or any winter squash with sweet orange flesh
3 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped

While sauteing leak and garlic in 2-3 Tbsp of coconut oil, ghee, or lard, peel and de-seed squash, cut it into chunks. Wash and cut into pieces all the vegetables. Add all the vegetables to the pot. Add the meat stock and bring to a boil Reduce heat to a minimum, cover with the lid and simmer for about 30 minutes. Pull out about 1 cup of squash and reserve. Blend soup mixture then return to pot and add reserved squash. Serve with 1/2 cup of yogurt (optional).

Meatball soup

2009-10-02T07:21:00.000-07:00

1 1b. ground beef or pork
1 lrg onion finely chopped
1 lrg carrot thinly sliced
1 cup winter squash cut into small cubes
1 cup of finely chopped cabbage (optional)
other veggies (optional)
2 Tbsp. of chopped garlic

Saute onion and garlic in 2-3 Tbsp. of coconut oil, ghee, or lard until onions are clear. (puree and then add back to pot if kids will resist onion)
In pot bring 8 cups of water to a boil. Add salt and cayenne pepper to taste.
With your hands shape meatballs about 2 cm in diameter and add them, one at a time, into the boiling water. Cover and simmer on low heat for 30 min. Add all the vegetables, cover and simmer for another 20 minutes. Serve with sauerkraut, spoonful of yogurt and chopped dill.

Recipes

2009-10-01T14:42:00.000-07:00

If you are cooking one of these recipes for us, please double check the "what we can eat" page to see an updated list of "safe" foods. If you are following GAPS, please note that I categorized the following recipes by Intro Stages myself so there may be some recipes that are not in the right spot. Always gauge by what your body can tolerate.

GAPS Recipes
Intro Phase 1
Bone Stock
soups
Carrot & Ginger Soup
Zucchini Soup
French Beef Stew
Winter Squash Soup
Meatball Soup
Butternut Squash & Fennel Soup
Cream of Vegetable Soup
Crock-Pot Roast
Pea Soup
snacks
Orange-Colored "Jello"
Mint Tea
Mint Tea Popsicles
Sparking Water
Simmer simple meatballs in beef broth (make meatballs with ground beef, onion, garlic, salt, fresh sage).
Pumpkin Ice Cream

Intro Phase 2
breakfast or snack
Soft Boiled Eggs and Egg Salad
Non-nut butter pancakes
casseroles/stews
Beef & Eggplant Casserole
Big Kid's Casserole
Pork Stew
Melt in your Mouth Beef Soup
Mashed "too-tatoes"
Beef & Pumpkin Stew
Veggie Minestrone
I Heart Texas Chili
Veggie Chicken Salad
Cilantro-Lime Chicken Salad
Chicken Nuggets
Rice & Gravy
snacks/desserts
Beets
Butternut Squash Ice Cream
Orange Popsicles
Carrot Coins and "Cheese"
Chicken Pancakes
Pumpkin Pie Filling
Coconut Oil Candies

Intro Phase 3
Hamburger/Hot Dog Buns
Pesto Sauce
Chicken Salad
Non-nut butter pancake sandwiches
Quiche Muffins
Carrot Latkes
snacks/desserts
Nut butter pancakes
Squash Mini Muffins
Veggie Pancakes
Cashew Butter Pancakes
Cashew Butter Cupcakes
Meringues
Nut butter Caramels
Nut butter snow balls
Almond butter muffins
Banana Sunflower Butter Pancakes
Crackers

Intro Phase 4
Almond Bread
Grain-Free Indian Flat Bread
Biscuits
Sloppy Joes
Roasted Red Pepper Soup
Roasted Cabbage
Baked Radish Chips
Breakfast Sausages
Chicken Nuggets
Glazed Turnips
Egg Casserole
desserts
Grain-Free Oatmeal Cookies
Cookie Cutter Cookies
Truffles
Apple Pie
Banana Bread

Moving On these are recipes we can currently do (or we use when we need to make exceptions) but are considered "Full Gaps"
Coconut Milk Jigglers
Banana Walnut Muffins
Graham Crackers/S'mores
Yoda Bars
Pumpkin Muffins with Streusel topping
Morning Smoothie
Yoda Bars

Healthy Fats
Rendering Lard
Ghee (clarified butter)

Condiments
Lacto-Fermented Mayo
Mayo with coconut & olive oil
BBQ Sauce
Ketchup
Taco Seasoning

Fermented Vegetables
Cauliflower Pickles

Non-GAPS recipes
Breakfasts
Dutch Babies
Desserts
Coconut Oil Fudge

French Beef Stew

2009-10-01T14:35:00.000-07:00

I'm cataloging my recipes as I make them. Here is what we're trying tonight:

French Stew

2# beef stew meat
2c. beef stock
1 onion, sliced
sea salt & pepper to taste

Put all ingredients into a large covered casserole, 4 hours @ 300*. The original recipe says to thicken with a flour & water mixture and put back into the oven for 10-15 minutes then serve over noodles or rice, or throw in some carrots & potatoes for the last couple hours of bake time.

I am going to try to thicken with Xanthum Gum instead of flour and we can not do potatoes. We did it in the crock pot on low.

Making Bone Stock

2009-09-30T13:19:00.000-07:00

I've had many requests to get this info out there so here you go...

Why make your own bone stock?
There are many blogs that answer this question already. For a good one go here
In my own words, basically its one of the most nutritious things you can do for you and your family. Its been traditionally used for centuries as a healer to the gut but you don't have to have gut issues to benefit from it. Home made beef stock (from pasture raised animals) has as much calcium as milk and tons of other vitamins and minerals. It is also loaded with lots of good fat that we all need. It is the staple of the diet we are following.

Commercial stock adds flavor to cooking but does contain anywhere near the health benefits and may even contain genetically modified organisms, MSG, and hormones.

How do you make your bone stock?
Again, there are many, better blogs out there that answer this question. Two I like are:
1. From GAPSters
2. From the Simple Dollar: this one talks about how to use all parts of the chicken and not waste anything.
3. From Simply Recipes: this one talks about roasting your meat bones first to get a good flavor

I have found that I like making it in the crock pot better...it keeps our kitchen cooler and I don't have an open flame going all night.

I have also found that you shouldn't go light on the salt. Put in LOTS of salt.

Where do you get your bones?
The best place I've found is from Greenwood Farms at the Tower Grove Farmers Market. We go on Saturday mornings. You can buy a bag of backs and necks for about $2/lb. One bag makes about 3 mason jars of stock. You can also buy a bag of legs and thighs (also about $2/lb). One bag of these also makes about 3 mason jars and also lots of yummy chicken to pull off and eat for dinner or save for snacks/lunches. You can also make stock by boiling the whole chicken or using the bones after you've roasted and eaten the chicken.

Greenwood Farms will be supplying meat, pork, chicken and eggs throughout the winter. You call them at 800-253-6574 to place your order (by Thursday each week) and then you go pick it up on Saturday at a place on Kingshighway.

What do you do with your stock?
We drink it with our meals to aid the digestion of your food. Its supposed to act like a digestive enzyme. I send it in thermos straw cups with the kids to school for snack and lunch time. I make all kinds of soup with it. I boil vegetables in it. I freeze it in ice cube trays and pull out when I need to add flavor or in cup size containers to make soup later. I put it in Annabelle's bottle instead of milk.

Happy soup making!

GAPS diet: Kid's Day 1 & 2

2009-09-30T06:27:00.000-07:00

All the kids started the diet yesterday. We've been talking to Tyler about it and he was all on board (in theory). I think he was still a little shocked when he sat down to a breakfast of chicken soup. Grayson was not happy about his soup and neither ate very much. I sent them off to school with their thermos' of chicken stock and little snack coolers with boiled chicken and broccoli. Oh, how I never wanted to be "that family."

I was positive as they day went on. Their teachers were on board with their new snacks and didn't look at me like I had five heads when I explained they would be drinking broth while their friends had kool-aid. When I picked Gray up, his teacher said he ate all his snack and asked for more broth. He and AB both downed their zucchini soup at lunch. I felt great victory.

Then, Tyler's teacher called in the afternoon to say Tyler had been sitting at the table with his head down and asking to go home. My mom went to pick him up. She is here for a few days, which is so wonderful. I couldn't have done this last two days without her. He fell asleep on the way home, then threw up all night and all day the next day (yesterday).

When I brought Gray and Tyler their breakfast yesterday morning, they looked at me and both started vomiting at the same time. I was literally still holding their bowls in shock. I ran to get a trash can and had to alternate between the two of them. This went on the whole day. Tyler; probably over 10 times throughout the day and Gray; probably 6 times throughout the night. We had to change his PJS, blankets, and sheets each time. We pretty much spent the whole day doing laundry and cleaning up. Please pray that this is the worst of it and it is over.

Apparently, this is a pretty common reaction to the start of the diet. Its called "die off." I'm on a yahoo group which has been very helpful to talk to other families and get encouragement. Everyone seems to think this is normal and part of healing. Its the body getting rid of all the toxins.

Tyler ate some eggs, peas and a little bit of broth this morning. Gray just woke up.

Please pray against an aversion to soups, especially broth. Tyler thinks that is what is making him sick. It is a staple to healing the gut and he needs it.

GAPS diet: Days 5-9

2009-09-26T05:36:00.000-07:00

It has been a very hard week. I've been continuing on the intro stage of this diet. To answer some questions: There are five stages to the intro to move through before going full into the diet. I'm on stage one. The time frame for moving through each stage is different for each individual. I've been confused as to when to move on to the next stage. I finally emailed one of the gals who works closely with the doc and she told me to move forward even though I'm still having symptoms.

My symptoms have decreased and I'm not in pain so that is a good sign. I was expecting to be symptom free before moving forward but I'm realizing that my not happen for a very long time. Once I'm on the full GAPS diet I can probably expect it to be a couple of years before I can start eating normally again.

I'm just really mourning the loss of good food. Brian has been such an encouragement. Every couple of days I say that I'm going to quit and that this isn't worth it and he reminds me it isn't forever and going back to how I was feeling isn't an option. I just keep trying to remember that at the end of this I should be able to eat more foods than I've been able to eat in a long time (not that I didn't eat those foods anyway...they just put me in a lot of pain).

We are starting the diet with the kids next Tuesday. I sat down with Tyler and explained to him all about the good gut flora and sick flora and what the flora's job is in our intestines. I showed him pictures and explained that I loved him very much and I wanted him to have all the good flora he could get. He was very on board and is actually excited to start "soup day." He was even more excited when I explained that after a long time he might be able to eat soy and milk again if we could build enough good stomach germs. He keeps talking about how when he's seven and we go to Minnesota he'll be able to eat ice cream. Please pray for that to come true. I would love for my boys to be free of their food intolerances.

I've been experiencing another round of die off. This is also known as the healing crisis. Its basically when your symptoms get worse before they get better. My eczema on my face is so bad it hurts and there are days I can barely open my eyes they are so swollen. Fatigue and lethargy are also some of my die off symptoms. Some days I feel like I can barely stand up. But, I have to. Someone has to cook all this soup!

Thank you for notes and call of encouragement. I know I will need even more next week when the kids start with me. If anyone has an urge to cook something for Brian, we would both be so grateful. Poor guy.

GAPS Diet: Day 3 & 4

2009-09-21T11:24:00.000-07:00

Today (Day 4) was easier. Partly because its Monday and I'm busier than we were over the weekend so my mind isn't as filled with food fantasies. It was also easier because my cravings seem to be lessening. I made a better soup yesterday, I ate the whole thing; probably 7 bowls. I was really hungry. I'm still experiencing symptoms so I did more research and realized I wasn't following the into diet completely correctly. I need to start with a bone stock base and add one vegetable at a time.

The following vegetables are the easiest to digest and where I'll start. If anyone has any soup recipes you like or think I could adjust, please pass them on.
Avocado
Artichoke, French
Asparagus
Bok Choy
Broccoli
Brussels sprouts
Cabbage
Cauliflower
Celeriac
Celery
Collard greens
Eggplant
Garlic
Ginger root, fresh
Kale
Mushrooms (some say folks with candida overgrowth should avoid)
Onions
Parsley
Peas
Peppers (green, yellow, red, and orange)
Spinach
Squash, Spaghetti
String beans
Tomatoes
Turnips (caution re: fibre)
Watercress
Zucchini

I made this soup today. It turned out pretty good, I used too much salt and like most of my soups its too thin. I copied it from the blog Thinking Outside the Box

Broccoli and Garlic Soup – simple but tasty soups for GAPS Intro

INGREDIENTS:

broccoli (1 lb / 450g)
broth (1 litre)
garlic (3 large cloves)
onions (2 medium size)
salt (3/4 tsp or to taste)
freshly ground peppercorns (3/4 tsp or to taste – pretty finely ground)

METHOD:

Wash the broccoli and cut into florets. Later, on GAPS intro, I also used the peeled, chopped stalk, but not early on. Peel the garlic cloves and peel and chop the onion coarsely. Place them all in a pan. Sprinkle over the salt and the freshly ground (this REALLY makes a difference!) peppercorns.

Add the broth and bring to simmering point. Put a lid on and simmer gently for about 25 minutes. Blend, dust with ground pepper and serve.

Alternatively you can add the garlic at the end of simmering and bring back to the boil briefly before blending. This method increases the health benefits from the garlic but I prefer the flavor when the garlic is included from the start of cooking.

Easy Breakfast

2009-09-21T04:45:00.000-07:00

Dutch Babies (like pancakes baked in oven)
Here is the basic recipe:
2/3 c. milk
1/2 c. whole wheat flour
1/4 tsp. salt
2 eggs

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Mix all together, pour into greased pie pan or 8 X 8 pan. Bake for 10 minutes or until brown on top. Sprinkle with sugar and serve with fresh fruit and yogurt.

Here are my variations:
2/3 c. coconut milk (So Delicious Brand found at Whole Foods)
1/2 c. whole wheat flour
1/4 tsp. sea salt (I've learned that coarse sea salt is far superior than refined table salt)
2 local, range fed eggs

The night before, pour 1 Tbsp of lemon juice into measuring cup. Fill up measuring cup with coconut milk until it measure 2/3 cup (This is my version of buttermilk). Mix in flour. Cover and let soak overnight. (I'll post later on the benefits of soaking grains). In the morning add eggs and salt and bake. I greased my pan with coconut oil to avoid bad vegetable fats and dairy. (I'll post later on the good and bad fats).

I served it this morning cut into strips with a bowl of honey to dip in. They loved it! I also had the thought of cutting it in squares and spreading something yummy (peanut butter, fried bananas, etc) in between two pieces as a breakfast sandwich.

You could also add applesauce, mashed bananas or other yummy stuff into the batter before baking.

Any other ideas?

GAPS diet, day 1 & 2

2009-09-19T12:45:00.000-07:00

These have been difficult days, to say the least. I've decided to follow the GAPS diet. I'll post later more on what the philosophy of GAPS is all about. In the mean time if you would like to find out more take a look at: http://www.gaps.me/preview/ or http://gapsdiet.com. If you struggle at all with GI issues, if your child has allergies or food sensitivities, or has SI issues or is on the autism spectrum then you need to just take a look to see what you think.

So here is what my diet has consisted of:
1. Bone Stock (beef and chicken). I've learned how to make this myself and pretty much have a pot on the stove making some type of stock all the time now. I supposed to drink cups of it with and in between meals but I can't stomach the taste of broth by itself. It reminds me too much of being sick as a child. Bone stock will continue to be a staple in my diet. "Meat stock aids digestion and has been known for centuries as a healing folk remedy for the digestive tract. Also bone-stock meat is extremely nourishing, it is full of minerals, vitamins, amino-acids and various other nutrients in a very bio-available form." GAPS. I'll post later on how I've learned to make it. This was my very first step in the diet overhaul process.
2. Boiled meat and non-starchy vegetables. I'm trying to make soups with these. I've made four different soups and I only liked one of them. It would really help if I were a good cook.
3. Ginger, mint, and chamomile tea.
4. Juice from fermented vegetables. I know that sounds crazy and I'll post on that later. Its not too bad and has great probiotic value.

That's it.

Can you see why its been a hard couple of days. All I can think about is the Chick-Fil-A add I watched on TV. I can feel the hot grease squirting into my mouth as I take my first bite of their fried chicken sandwich. The cravings I've had today are harder than any craving I felt the first week off sugar. I don't crave sugar right now though...that's a positive.

I'm supposed to be on this introduction diet until my GI symptoms normalize. Pray it goes fast.
To read the full GAPS intro diet click here http://gapsdiet.com/INTRODUCTION_DIET.html

The Last Cupcake

2009-09-17T11:50:00.000-07:00

My ability to cook has grown over the years. Many of you know and love to story of me cooking brownies in high school and when the box said "mix by hand" I literally stuck my hand in the batter and mixed by hand. That was the season in life when my diet consisted of cereal, Hungry Man Fried Chicken TV dinners, and buttered corn in the school lunch room. The only vegetables I ate were my grandma's green beans, creamed corn, occasionally cooked carrots and peas. I can still remember ordering roasted vegetables for the first time at a restaurant with my friend Lauren...I was in my mid-20's. I was so surprised how good they tasted. I can remember the first time I tried cooked broccoli and liked it was also in my mid-20's at the Sweeney's.

I share all this to express that I am not historically a health nut and I have very little experience in the kitchen.

Last week, when I was overwhelmed with the gap between where we were and where I wanted to be I decided to make a list of baby steps. I wanted to pick a first step that did not require new cooking skills or recipes. So, on September 10th I gave up sugar. Annabelle turned one on the 9th and I savored every bite of my last piece of sugar, my last cupcake. The next day I tossed out the left over cupcakes and when there was icing on my finger I washed it off in the sink instead of licking it. That's when I knew this was serious.

I am addicted to sugar. I can not eat small amounts. If there is a pastry sitting on my counter I will eat all of it before the day is over, it doesn't matter what size. It doesn't even matter if I know its something Brian will really want when he gets home. I try. I try to save it for him but I have no self-control. This is one of the reasons I know I need to give it up.

I'm also giving it up because I think it makes me sick. Everything I'm reading, regardless of how much opinions agree on something else, they all agree sugar is bad for you...especially refined sugar (table sugar) and even worse; high fructose corn syrup. Your gut is full of good bugs and most of us have guts that also host the bad bugs. The bad bugs feed on sugar, refined grains, and yeast. The normal western diet is full of processed foods which are foods that have been changed so much from their natural state that they often don't taste very good so sugar is added to make us want to buy them. And that's just normal food, not solely sweet items. Take a look at the boxes and cans in your cupboard. I will be surprised if you can find many things without sugar in them.

“A child or adult who eats a diet high in difficult-to-digest carbohydrates such as grains and processed foods will continue to encourage the underlying condition of gut dysbiosis. Dr. Campbell-McBride states that people with damaged flora will crave the very foods that support the survival of the unhealthy bacteria, often to the exclusion and refusal of others.”

I know there are some of you out there who have already done this and if you have ideas on what to eat when you have a sweet tooth, please comment below and share your recipes. I would especially love something kid friendly.

If you are not ready to totally kick out sugar then here are some ideas:

In the latest Wise Traditions, Sally Fallon gives these suggestions:

If you want something sweet, eat a piece of fruit, not a candy bar labeled as a “health food”.
Use sweeteners that are known to be safer. For uncooked dishes, unheated raw honey or dates work well. For cooked dishes or sweet drinks, a good organic maple syrup, or even freshly juiced apple juice or orange juice can provide delicious and relatively safe sweetness; dehydrated cane sugar juice or maple sugar may be used in moderation in cookies and desserts that contain nutritious ingredients and good fats such as butter, egg yolks and nuts.
One should limit total sweetener consumption to less than five percent of daily calories.
Many people do best by avoiding sweeteners completely.

Here is info copied from one of my favorite blogs KellytheKitchenKop.com This links below won't connect you to anything because I just copied and pasted them but if you want to view this same information on her blog so you can activate the links it is http://kellythekitchenkop.com/2009/04/sugars-part-2-best-to-worst.html

These are in order from best choices to the worst choices:

No refined sugar is best, and only small amounts of natural sugars. (Hopefully someday I’ll get there!)
Stevia, rapadura, sucanat, maple syrup, maple sugar, honey, coconut or palm sugar, molasses, dates – these are all the least refined, the most natural, and contain the most nutrients - more info below about some of these natural sweeteners.)
Turbinado, organic regular sugar (this one is a little better because organic has no GMOs (Genetically Modified Organisms) from the sugar beets), evaporated cane juice
Regular refined white table sugar or brown sugar (see above about GMOs) - refined sugars have no nutrients left in them at all…
Avoid: high fructose corn syrup, agave nectar, xylitol, erythritol, artificial sugars (Splenda, Nutrasweet, etc. – it’s better to use small amounts of real sweeteners above than to use these fake sugars.)

What I’ve (Kelly the Kitchen Kop) learned:

I haven’t had much luck with Stevia, so I’m afraid to experiment more. Please comment and tell us what you like it in.
Rapadura or sucanat is great for some things, like cinnamon toast or to sweeten a sauce, but I have found it to give baked goods too strong a taste. However, I just tried Ann Marie’s sucanat and hers tastes milder than my rapadura, and she has good luck with it in baked goods, so maybe it’s just a brand difference! Be sure to experiment to find what you like.
Ann Marie also just had me try her organic evaporated palm sugar and it’s so good! I could use that to replace 100% of the refined sugar in cookies and it would taste exactly the same! I’m so excited about this, because I’ve still used some refined sweeteners in my recipes if I couldn’t get them to taste good otherwise, but this may get me totally away from refined sweeteners!
Molasses is a sweetener with a strong taste, I use a little in the nut bar recipe that I’m posting soon – what have you had good luck with it in?
As I said last time, this chocolate mousse is a great recipe using dates as the sweetener. You process them up really small and they give a good flavor.
Maple syrup (or maple sugar) is great for the ooey gooey layer in the bottom of the pan of cinnamon rolls, in homemade ice cream, to give smoothies a little sweet taste, and in homemade applesauce!
I like raw honey in my homemade bread, in a homemade hot fudge sauce or chocolate fudge, and to substitute part of the sugar in cookie recipes, but if I substitute it for all the sugar, the honey taste takes over.
I don’t worry so much about the tiny amounts of xylitol in gum or toothpaste, but maybe I should…any thoughts?
Often you can drastically cut the amount of sugar in a recipe without anyone noticing.

Other information on sweeteners:

Passionate Homemaking has good info on the difference between rapadura vs. sucanat!
The Nourishing Gourmet has more information on palm sugar and the glycemic index of these sugars (in the comments section).
More info on these natural sweeteners:
- Blackstrap Molasses is approximately 65 percent as sweet as sugar and can be used in both cooking and baking. Blackstrap molasses is an excellent source of manganese and copper, and also contains iron, magnesium, calcium, potassium, and Vitamin B6.
- Maple syrup is most widely known as a topping for pancakes and waffles, but it’s also a natural sweetener that can be used in baking and is a good source of magnesium and zinc. Maple syrup is about 60 percent as sweet as sugar. Maple syrup can cause blood sugar levels to rise, so those with diabetes should use it sparingly.
- Raw Honey is a natural sweetener that has powerful disease-protecting antioxidants that are thought to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer. Honey is 25 to 50 percent sweeter than sugar and can be used in cooking, baking, and beverages. As with maple syrup, honey can cause a spike in blood sugar levels and should be used sparingly by those with diabetes. (Note: Do not give honey to children under one year of age as it may put younger children at risk for botulism.)
  Source

Why We're Doing What We're Doing

2009-09-16T12:13:00.000-07:00

Here are the basics for why we're changing the way we're eating.

I have had severe eczema since I was an infant and continue to struggle with it, I've had little breaks throughout my life where it hasn't been that bad but it is currently moderately severe on my face and neck. I've had IBS since I was 10 and discovered in my 20s that when I limited dairy it helped significantly with my gut issues. When I graduated college I saw many doctors to see if someone could pinpoint a way to cure my eczema and why I was always getting sick and was always so tired. No one could help.

I continued searching for someone to help until I had my first child in 2004. He has reflux that was alleviated when I completely cut dairy out of my diet ( I was nursing). We have always kept him on limited dairy.

In 2007 after the birth of my second son, my IBS symptoms increased greatly. I got to where I was in pain everyday. I also suffered from gall bladder attacks. After many months of tests under a GI I was on the road to have my gall bladder removed when I got pregnant with our third child. She was a surprise blessing in so many ways. Because I was pregnant I reached out of the common western medicine and sought out a natural approach to my symptoms. I started seeing a natural pathologist in 2008. With diet and supplements we were able to alleviate the gall bladder symptoms but my IBS symptoms still reside and are often debilitating. It has recently been suggested by my natural pathologist that I might have a Fructose Intolerance.

My boys struggle as well. Tyler (5) reached a crisis point in his behavior in Jan 2009 leading us to pulling him from his preschool, starting OT and completely eliminating dairy and soy from his diet. His behavior is consistent with a child with ADHD (I also have been dx with ADD). Grayson (2) had chronic ear infections and was put on many antibiotics in his first year. This led to intense diarrhea (up to 12 a day) until he was about 15mo. when we started him on a probiotic and the number of BMs decreased. He still struggles with 1-4 a day.

My husband read the book The Omnivore's Delima and is personally convicted on the idea of buying our meat and eggs from organic, local farmers. He feels that we need to care for animals in the way God intended us to care for them by letting them live and eat as they were created.

The more I read about I current food system and the unnatural way food is by the time it comes to our homes, I am convinced I need to be making most of our food. I know that sounds so extreme and I'm not sure how that will happen but I believe in it.

Here are some of the links that I have been reading and have helped my research:

The Gut and Psychology Syndrome This has been the most helpful. I am planning to follow their suggested diet. The main idea here is that all disease starts in the gut. Heal the gut and you heal the body/brain

Robyn O'Brian's site which talks about our current food system and how it contributes to our most common diseases

The Body Ecology Diet This has also been extremely helpful. I have read her book and it is much in line with The GAP philosophy.

KellytheKitchenKop This is a great blog and where I first heard about the GAPS diet

Cheeseslave Another great blog of a woman with a 1.5 yr old which has given me very different ideas on how to feed Annabelle

http://www.gaps.me/preview/?page_id=20

The First Post

2009-09-16T08:14:00.000-07:00

I can't believe I'm blogging. Until about a month ago, I wasn't even really sure how the whole blog thing was. I'm still not entirely sure how the whole thing works. But, I am starting one nonetheless.

I am changing the entire way our family eats...starting with me (baby steps). I have had many questions about this from friends and especially friends that struggle with some of the same health issues themselves or with their children.

It's been on my heart to start this blog for a few reasons. 1) It might be therapeutic as I am very overwhelmed by the amount of info and the new way of cooking, shopping, etc. 2)I need a way to organize my thoughts for myself 3)It might help someone else wanting to make changes in their health or their family's 4)I need help. So many people have offered to help and don't really know how to and I don't know what to ask for. Maybe as I am posting things, someone will have some great ideas on how they can contribute.

So, here we go...