I found a cookbook! Wow! This is Allergy Free and Sugarfree

First off---we've had a day or two of really warm weather and our lilac bushes have budding leaves!

 

My husband and I went to Lehman's General Store last weekend, as we are accustomed to doing about this time most years.

While I was there, I picked up a book that I had regretted not picking up last year: a spiral bound cookbook with the title Wow! This is Allergy Free and Sugarfree by Mary Yoder and Deborah Steiner.  From the looks of the family picture on the back of the book, I'd guess the authors are Mennonite or Amish. 

When I first picked this book up, I was skeptical. I've been eating Gluten-free (with a cheat here and there) for a couple years now, and truly did not expect to find anything non-wheaty as far as cookbooks go in an Amish store.  The fact that it was about allergies surprised me as well.  I may go into my lunch-and-dinner ventures in Amish country in a different post...

This book is based on the use of a "Four Day Rotation Diet", something that I have read about a lot in my allergy journey, but  have not embraced.  Part of the reason I have not taken to the four day rotation of foods was that, in the past, I did not have a wide enough variety of foods I could eat to break them up into eating once every four days.  Another reason was that I couldn't figure out how to do it; how to sub properly. I didn't have reliable recipes to use--it would have meant more hours scouring the internet for usable recipes.

I feel like I've been regressing a bit with my health/allergies lately.  I am sure part of it is stress with adding a paying job to my schedule and trying(and failing) to balance everything, part of it is that spring allergy season is gearing up, and part of it is because I have been eating more junk (read: Easter candy, chips, etc) and not so healthy meals due to a real lack of time to cook said meals when I am at work during the dinner-prep hour.  The family only wants so much roast and veggies or stew...

So....I am thinking about incorporating some of these recipes into my repertoire.  I'm not sure I want to do it completely, one reason being that I would have to give up my ritual of tea drinking in the morning.... I love my tea...I did pick up some different flours from the health food store and hopefully that will give me a good start.

I like the fact that the authors are at least aware of the corn allergy issue and the gluten issue, and I can adapt the days they have gluten-containing ingredients with the other alternative non-gluten ingredients.  I like that, when they use a "gum" in breads, it is guar gum and not (corn-derived) xanthan gum.  That, to me, is promising.  And I didn't see a whole lot of "gums", which I prefer as well.

So, we'll see how it goes, once I get a handle on it and try some of the recipes out!

A GF Aldi Lunch Salad

Thought I would share my GF lunch using Aldi ingredients.  I was tired of the same ol' leftovers and sandwiches and wanted something fresh to eat, so I made this up from my fridge ingredients from my last Aldi run. You can make it with ingredients from any ol' store (or your garden!).

For this salad, I used:

1 1/2 heads of the Artisan Lettuce. I picked one of the reddish heads and half of one of the green heads.
Chopped onion
Shredded Cheddar Cheese
12 or so Pepperoni slices (yep, these are GF!)
Some jarred Marinated Roasted Red Peppers with Garlic Cloves and Olive Oil
Olive oil from the jar of peppers
Pepper and salt ground from my pepper and salt mills

This made for a tasty, spicy lunch. I will probably having something a little more substantial later this afternoon, but this hit the spot for a light lunch!

Thanks for reading!

Garden Observations 2012

The garden is at its peak production, it seems. Maybe it's due to my avoiding it during the worst weeks of ragweed season...but I feel a need to get out there and harvest what is available. Especially since the weather is cooling off substantially--this makes it more pleasant to work outside, and also reminds me that soon the weather will be turning.

The Garden in September 2012

The green beans have long ago stopped producing.  I do, however, have some dry beans to harvest. Not a lot--we'll see how it goes. One of them is a variety that is hard to find locally and we wanted to just get enough to plant more next year and then hopefully be able to eat off of that crop.

The volunteer cherry tomatoes are proliferating, and I need to get the kids out to pick a bunch this afternoon. Same with banana peppers. I picked some of each this morning. I wonder if they would make a good mild salsa....

And a praying mantis that flew past me and onto the pepper plants.

Praying mantis on banana pepper plant.

I pulled what onions I could find. They didn't do very well. Maybe I was late in planting them (yeah, I was). Additionally, I didn't pay attention to what specific variety they were and if they are appropriate for our part of the country--I just picked up some sets from the grocery store. Maybe I'll rethink that for next year.

The pepper plants I purchased in July out of pity at the local nursery aren't doing anything worthy of note. Same with the melon plant. No point in purchasing plants at that point in the season...duly noted. (But I tried!)

I have beets I need to pull, but I am waiting until closer to dinner and on a night that I don't have running around to do....that way we can  have beet greens for dinner and then I can work on beets after dinner.

Yes, there are beets in there among the grass/weeds!

The okra is doing well this late in the season.  In fact, it's probably just getting going well and it will freeze in the next month.  I'm happy to have fresh okra I can fry up gluten-free and not have to rely on restaurants and frozen okra that is not gluten-free. :)   Next year, I need to plant it on either end of the garden, so that all of the plants can get consistent sun.  The lack of sun for the ones that get shaded by sunflowers really makes a negative difference in how well the okra has done.  We are still learning what size okra is best to pick--and to pick often! We are going to have a lot of seed for next year... People around here think I am weird for planting okra in Ohio--as if it's was unheard of and impossible! Maybe I will pass out seed and start a movement, hehe.

Burgundy Okra

Burgundy Okra Flower--Isn't it pretty?

The Job's Tears experiment is almost done. I am waiting for the little seeds to dry before I pick them and write an update on them.

Job's Tears plant

Sunflowers next year need to go along the back of the garden. I put them on the west side this year for some reason(oh, I remember--to give the cucumbers some shade), and let some volunteers stay in the middle of the garden, and I'm not sure that was a wise move. I will soon cut them down, tie them together, and put them somewhere to be a fall decoration/bird feeder.

Hubby has sorghum he needs to figure out what to do with. And we have corn(dry) to pick as well.

Sorghum, reaching for the sky!

The kids in front of the sorghum

The chard and kale should be tasty soon. It's been bitter, so I have been breaking leaves off and giving them to the chickens, who love them.

I need to harvest my huge basil plants before the weather gets too cold and make frozen pesto stuff to put in the freezer (it was yummy on pizza!).

Overgrown basil in need of plucking.

More basil-a ruffly purple type.

I have parsley (regular and flat leaf) that I have plucked leaves from and am drying in the dehydrator today.  I had to selectively pluck, because there were at least 6 of those caterpillars on the plants!

There is also a little arugula out there I need to incorporate into a salad or something.

Arugula--I cut it back when it started to bolt.

Wow--I didn't realize the variety of stuff we had out there! I better get to work!

 Here's a few flower pics from the garden for good measure. I plant them in with the veggies to encourage insects to come visit. :) I've got cosmos and marigolds as well, but they didn't make the cut.

Nasturtiums

Borage

I want to add Zinnias next year. :)
And potatoes and sweet potatoes and do better with beans and greens...

RECIPE: GF Tortilla Pizza

It's been awhile since I've posted anything, so I thought I would share what I am having for lunch today. :)

I generally eat leftovers for lunch, but didn't want that today. I wanted pizza.

So, here's what I did with what I had in the house to make a tasty GF lunch.

GF Tortilla Pizza

• 1 Food for Life Brown Rice Tortilla

I put this in my biggest cast iron skillet and put it in a 425* oven to thaw and crisp up a bit (watch it closely!).


Meanwhile, I put a bit of olive oil in another cast iron pan and added the following:

• 1 sliced onion

• 3 or so sliced mushrooms

• a clove or two of garlic, sliced thin

• Some frozen bell pepper slices

• some leftover cut up pork loin that was seasoned w/garlic, rosemary, etc.

• A bit of salt

I took out 2 basil cubes from the freezer and thawed them in the microwave.


When my tortilla was sufficiently warmed/crisped, I spread the basil on it, then put some shredded cheese, the sauteed veggies (you may not want to put all the oil/liquid from the pan onto the pizza, or it might get too soggy), and topped with a bit more cheese and a sprinkling of salt.


I returned it to the oven and let it cook, checking often, until it looked done enough to eat. Cool, cut, and devour.

Yum!

GF/Top 8 Allergy Helps: Meijer.com

When someone is newly diagnosed with food allergies/sensitivities/intolerances/what have you, they often start with a "I can't have XYZ." outlook as they think about what they will be eating from day to day.  Today's food stores are packed to the brim with food, but if someone has a list of ingredients they can't eat, shopping can quickly become a discouraging chore as many foods are taken off the plate. I know that I often felt very deprived during my year of avoiding so many foods and found it to be quite depressing.

I would like to encourage the thought of "I can't have XYZ." to become more like "Look at all these things I *can*  have!", because that thought is much more positive, and opens up a realm of possibilities.

Awhile back, I found a helpful source of information that has opened up some new food options: Meijer.com.  I'm not sure why I waited this long to share it!

I would recommend sitting down with the list and making your own list of foods that you *can* have, and working from there to add some interesting flair to your diet. 

Multiple Food Allergies?
When striving to eat Gluten/Top 8 Allergen Free, it can be hard at times to read food labels and know for certain whether a product contains something you are trying to avoid--there's just so much to watch out for, it's overwhelming! One way to simplify things is to avoid processed foods (and even then it's still hard to avoid certain things), but it's also nice to have a list of safe items to have on hand for a change of pace.

One excellent resource I have found is the Meijer website, Meijer.com.  Meijer offers many helps to those of us who are dealing with food issues, the most helpful to me being the Meijer Brand Allergen List.

Although Gluten is not technically a top 8 allergen, it is included on the Meijer Brand Allergen List, along with each of the top 8 allergens, Starch, and Phenyl.  Meijer has generally been responsive to me when I've contacted them with questions regarding specific products in relation to allergies and derivatives (unlike some other store-brand attempts to find answers), but this listing simplifies the process.

Of course, if you have allergies beyond the scope of the chart, you would still need to contact the company. And do still pay attention to labels, because they can change without notice.

The way to get to the Meijer Brand Allergen List (rather than the link above) is to go to Meijer.com.  Scroll down to the bottom of the page and under Do More, click Healthy Living.  Then under Special Diets, click Meijer Brand Allergen List, and then click View the List here.


Only Avoiding Gluten?
If you are only looking to avoid Gluten, you can simplify your search by going to the Meijer Brand Grocery Gluten-Free Products List.  There is also a Meijer Brand Gluten-Free Drug Store Product List.


If you don't have a Meijer store in your area, you are probably thinking you read this post for no reason. Have no fear--it's not all for naught! Peruse the Meijer site a bit further and Under Special Diets is a Gluten Free Resources listing, as well as a National Brand Gluten-Free Product List (last updated March of 2011).


Many thanks to Meijer for making this information available to us!

Food Journal 9-13-11

I would like to keep track of what I am eating, both to help others who are on a similar diet and might need ideas, and to rein myself in on days that I just want to eat-eat-eat!

Today, this is what I'm eating. I will be adding as the day goes on.

~Decaf Frontier Bulk Loose Leaf Ceylon Tea with local honey and milk

Breakfast:
~Omelet made using pastured butter in the cast iron pan, 3 local pastured eggs, and a couple pieces of Muenster cheese.
~Cup of hot PG Tips Loose Tea, with local honey and Coffee-Mate Natural Bliss (this was way too sweet!-didn't think about the added sugar when I put the honey in at first...) I picked up the Natural Bliss at the grocery because it was the closest I could get to half 'n half without the nasty throat-burning additives in most half 'n halfs..  Ingredients are: nonfat milk, heavy cream, sugar, natural flavors. Not sure what the natural flavors are/contain, but I don't get the throat/gut issues with this product...worth the risk, but not sure I will choose it over whole milk next time.

~Large glass of Filtered Water (using our Big Berkey with ceramic filters)
~Cup of nasty, gross coffee (gotta remember to set the grinder right next time!)
Lunch:
~Bowl of Dahl Soup over Brown Rice

Snack:
~ 2 GF Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars-made using the Nestle Tollhouse recipe and subbing Bob's All-Purpose GF Baking Flour for the flour in the recipe
~Glass of 2% rbgh-free milk (Meyer brand this time)

Dinner:
~Bowl of Healing Turkey Veggie Soup (I used turkey bone broth from the freezer, a couple shiitake mushrooms, and added astragalus as it was simmering for 2 hours)

~Glass of 2% rbgh-free milk
~multivitamin, probiotic, omega 3

Before Bedtime:
~Glass of water

The Gluten-Free Healthy Snack List

In my Gluten-Free journey, there are times that I am stumped as to what to eat for a snack.  So, I finally made a list to go to when I find myself in this predicament.

It's also a good way to keep myself and the kids from relying on processed (often GMO-laden) foods for snacks, and to learn/teach about combining foods to get enough protein to feel satisfied for awhile!

Also, if I am wandering around trying to figure out what to eat and nothing sounds good, I find a glass of water really hits the spot. We often think we are hungry, when we are actually thirsty.

The Gluten-Free Healthy Snack List

~Apples (dried or fresh) with nut butter OR cheese OR a handful of nuts

~Dried fruit (unsulphured is best, IMO) and a handful of nuts or seeds

~Celery with nut butter (add raisins for "Ants on a Log")

~Carrots/Peppers/Celery/other Veggies with Hummus

~Banana--frozen on a stick has gone over well here this summer.  We found Diana's Bananas this summer and they were a hit! They are just bananas frozen on a stick and dipped in chocolate (dark or milk).

~Frozen peas and carrots or mixed vegetables-2 of my kids love to eat these right from the freezer

~Tortilla Chips (yes, these are packaged) with Hummus, or made as Nachos with Cheese and Salsa and maybe some Refried Beans

~Dried Vegetable Chips (Zucchini, Summer Squash, Beets...)

~Kale Chips (ok, well, I liked them)

~Freezer Pickles or Cucumbers and Onions

~Boiled Egg

~Yogurt (plain, or with a sprinkling of Homemade Granola)

~Cottage Cheese (I prefer Daisy because of the simple, short list of ingredients) and some fruit such as peaches (canned or fresh)

~Gluten-Free Zucchini Brownies

~Popcorn (we like it with butter, salt, and a bit of nutritional yeast--for B vitamins!)

~A cup of Gluten-free cereal or Homemade Granola incorporated into a Trail Mix

~Healthier Morning Orange Drink--for an afternoon snack sort of like an Orange Julius Shake--made with Kefir or Yogurt for more protein!
OR, made as Popsicles for a cool treat!




What would you add to this list?

What a Corn/Soy/Coconut Allergic Person Can Eat

Being allergic to Corn, Soy and Coconut sure brings one's average American lifestyle to a screeching halt. Adding Peanuts, Tree nuts(specifically pistachios, hazelnuts, pecans, but avoiding all), Peas, Tomatoes, Potatoes(and Peppers and Eggplant by default since they are in the same family), Garlic, Mushroom, Celery and Cauliflower to the list of foods to avoid makes it all the more interesting to find what I *could* eat.

It took me about 2 weeks of research to figure out the basic foods that I could eat and not be consuming my allergens or other foods in their families.

Along with the Food Families list I was given by my conventional allergist, I found this Botanical Food Family List to be very helpful.

Using this botanical list, I sat down and compiled a basic list of what I could eat. A list of "Yes, you can eat these foods!" was far more uplifting than a list of "No, you cannot eat these foods!".


Even with my list compiled, I still had to be very careful of corn and soy derivatives, so there were unwritten rules to go with this list as well. I couldn't just give this list to someone and expect to have an allergen-free meal.


WHAT I COULD EAT-The Basic List
Proteins:
~Meats were my basic protein source, since beans were out of the question(being related to soy, peas and peanuts). I looked for basic, simple meats with no additives if at all possible. Grass-fed/Free-range was much preferred but not always available.
~Eggs (note that for some corn-allergic people, corn-fed chicken eggs can cause reactions)
~Milk products(note that for some corn-allergic people, the fortifications in milk are most often based in corn oil and cause problems). Most cheeses have corn added at some point, whether the coloring agent in yellow cheeses, the vinegar in cheeses such as mozzarella, the enzymes in some cheeses, or the starch added to pre-shredded varieties or to the wrappers. I generally stuck to white blocks or sticks of cheese, or an imported parmesan and tried to have cheese in moderation(not every day).

I made my own yogurt for awhile, and have recently started making kefir and having that every day.

Fruits:
~Apples(risky due to corny waxes, but local ones were fine)
~Blueberries-usually frozen
~Craisins(Original only)-they do contain cane/beet sugar and a small amount of sunflower oil
~Elderberries
~Figs(dried w/no preservatives)
~Grapes/Raisins(being careful of molds, which are common in grapes, and any additives)
~Lemons(other citrus bothered me until recently)
~Melons with caution-(again, the potential mold being the factor, as well as its' connection with ragweed allergy)
~Mulberries
~Pears(same risk as the apples)
~Pears-Canned in Pear juice
~Rhubarb

Vegetables:
~Beets
~Black Olives(read labels)
~Carrots-frozen w/o cornstarch, or Bunny Luv brand, which are NOT rinsed in citric acid
~Chard
~Cucumbers
~Green Beans
~Lettuce--look for "no preservatives" on the label, which is not a guarantee of no corn but more possible than those not showing that label
~Okra
~Spinach-fresh, "no preservatives", or frozen or canned(read labels)
~Squash-including zucchini and yellow squash and winter squashes
~Sweet Potatoes

Grains/"Grains":
~Buckwheat-for flour as well as for hot cereal-being careful/aware of potential cross-contamination in the mills
~Quinoa-as flour and as a hot cereal
~Arrowroot powder(to make my own baking powder and as a substitute for corn starch)
~Tapioca-as a powder/flour (such as in the Chebe mixes), as well as a cold treat(homemade tapioca pudding)

Baking items:
~Homemade baking powder
~Sunflower oil, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Grapeseed Oil, Safflower Oil
~Homemade Vanilla
~King Arthur Flours
~Beet Sugar(Walmart's Great Value brand is often derived from beets) until you rule out Cane sugar as OK
~Maple syrup-the real thing, read labels
~Hershey's Cocoa Powder
~EnjoyLife Chocolate Chips
~Butter--NOT the kind with 'natural flavors', the salted is much less likely to contain corn derivatives. Check the list for promising brands.
~Apple Cider Vinegar--NOT Heinz

Beverages:
~Mott's Natural Pressed Apple Juice--should only have Apple Juice and water in the list, no citric/ascorbic acids
~Virgil's Cream Soda
~Jones Soda Cream Soda ONLY
~Izze Sparkling Juices
~Metromint flavored waters
~Tea-bulk is best, as many tea bags have potential of containing corn. I believe Lipton tea bags are fine.
~Coffee(?)-there is much debate as to whether there are corn derivatives in coffee. It seems to be on an individual basis as to whether it bothers you. I can't do more than one or at most two cups a day without it bothering me.
~Hot cocoa-made with milk, safe cocoa powder and sugar or maple syrup

Treats:
~Yummy Earth Lollipops and Candy Drops--Contact them for specific details on which flavors are safe. I used the vitamin C ones as a source of vitamin C, since all of the supplements contained citric acid derived from corn. I particularly like the Roadside Root Beer and the Cheeky Lemon.
~Pork Rinds-not really a "treat", but something to fill my belly that was fairly easy to find and safe as long as I could find them with ONLY salt
~Sunflower Seeds-no special flavors, only the salted/unsalted kind. I did ok with Dave's brand.
~Pumpkin Seeds-Dave's brand is what was relatively easy to find. I prefer raw pumpkin seeds mixed with Craisins and some EnjoyLife Chocolate Chips for a snack.


So, there you have it. The basic menu I lived off of for about 10 months!