week 13, kill, kill, kill!

man. you know things have changed when your treat of the week turns out to be:
Erewhon crispy rice cereal!
(pronounced AIR WOHN, like a Lord of the Rings character)
less than 1 g of sugar, 3 ingredients, a tried and true company...I had to try it! and it was good; satisfied my need for a treat.

for 13 weeks now, I have been on a special diet to starve the little bacteria friends in my stomach and intestines, and taking oregano oil and berberine for the past month to help my kill along its way. we all have bacteria, good and bad, but when the bad take over, you start to have symptoms of extreme fatigue, depression, carb cravings, skin rash, headaches, brain fog...all of which I thought was candida and hormones. turns out, it was H pylori and another bacteria buddy = intestinal dysbiosis. boo.

also, it turns out that there is a connection between celiac disease and H pylori overgrowth -- read all about it here.

low stomach acid can be a factor in developing both overgrowth of H pylori and food allergies and intolerances, and vice versa. a little like the chicken and the egg.

if you have been diagnosed with these lovely health issues, you too can really make profound changes in how you feel through diet and supplements. for my regime, I started with 8 weeks of candistatin, then switched to 4 weeks of gastro mycin and berberine, and now I am on a month of berberine plus oregano oil. and of course a good probiotic.

here are the diet dos and don'ts.

do eat:

as many servings of lightly steamed veg as you wish, but stay away from high starch ones, like potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots and winter squashes, at least for one month. some raw, especially juiced veg.

fruits can be added in after one month, but not every day. berries are best. no dried fruits.

coconut oil and meat -- contains large amounts of lauric acid, which is antifungal and antibacterial, and in general it is a good saturated fat.

other good oils, like walnut, flax, avocado, olive oil.

some soaked nuts and seeds, nut and seed butters (no peanut).

some sprouted legumes.

some whole grains, but stay away from pastas, and try to avoid them for the first month.

eggs, eggs and more eggs, if you're not allergic.

yoghurt and kefir, if you can tolerate dairy, in small amounts.

sea vegetables, cinnamon, ginger root, garlic, fresh herbs.

fennel or other herbal tea, and green tea is really good too.

lots and lots of filtered or bottled water (1/2 your weight in ounces every day).

don'ts:

no sugar, honey, maple syrup, agave, brown rice syrup, date sugar, etc.

try not to lean on carbs. do small amounts of whole grains (drizzle grains with a good oil, slows down its conversion to sugar as you digest it) and larger/more veg.

no corn (is a moldy food), peanuts (another moldy food), alcohol, coffee, black tea, dried fruits.

avoid leftovers for the first month. (mold factor)

here is an example of a daily menu plan. it might sound boring, but you'll find ways to spruce it up. as your palate changes, it gets easier...:) ease your way in, take your time. treat yourself once a week to something off-diet. if this way of eating is a drastic change, try just cutting down on refined sugars and carbs before going full hog.
if it is any consolation, I did this in '07, but I think I stopped short of killing it all (at the end, only the hardiest strains remain, so just when you think you're ok, think again, and send off another stool sample til you're all clear) and it's been lurking. it just took two major surgeries and some hormonal changes to give it an in. so, in other words, it's a long road...start with small steps.

breakfast:
(I try to have my grains in the morning when my digestion is at its best and fastest)
cream of buckwheat cereal, or amaranth, or brown rice, or g-f oats if you can tolerate them, with 1 T of coconut oil swirled in, plus flax seeds and a little homemade almond milk (more on that later) and some soaked nuts like pecans. sprinkle on some cinnamon, and you'll be surprised that you don't miss any sweetener. if you do, try a pinch of stevia.

--or--
2 eggs and an avocado

--or--
salmon and an avocado

green or herbal tea

snack: handful of berries

water, water, water (stop 1/2 hour before meals, dilutes your stomach acid)

lunch:
pick 3 veg and lightly steam. for example, 1 cup each of broccoli, beets and beet greens. drizzle with flax oil, add some chopped herbs and some celtic sea salt.
if you're having adrenal fatigue, add 3 oz of poultry or fish, or 1/4 cup sprouted legumes.

water and herbal tea

dinner:
(I try to eat before 8 pm, some nights this is a tall order, tho. digestion slows way down and I get itchy, so I try to eat dinner by 6 if possible!)
3 oz poultry or fish or sprouted legumes (I avoid grains and legumes at the dinner meal b/c of slower digestion).
3 different vegetables. try grilled, roasted, lightly steamed. add some sea veg.
make a sauce from Bragg's and tahini and/or almond butter, garlic and ginger. add scallions and fresh herbs. go crazy!

water/herbal tea

I hope you find this helpful on your path to good health. if you're super cranky, irritable and headachey at first, this is normal. ease your way in, don't do anything too drastic.
be well~

p.s. a little side benefit to eating this way is that I have had no seasonal allergies!! woot.

sprouted lentil burgers, drinking kale juice and coco macaroons

Hello, Goat City followers!

I have just finished level 2 of my 5-level Holistic Nutrition Course at Tulsi here in DC. Wow, I have learned a bunch, and I have so much more to learn. Brain exploding!

Started drinking my kale cooking water and using it to make tahini or almond butter sauces and drizzles. It has all the good stuff in it, and I usually just toss it! Now I am trying to toss it back. Just one of the many good nutrition tips I have learned in my classes...

Last night I wanted to have germinated brown rice, sprouted lentils and kale -n- dandelion greens, with a tahini-parsley sauce drizzle, only...I wanted that to not be boring! So, I highly recommend turning your "boring" lentils into burgers -- throw 1 c lentils cooked for about 10 mins (the sprouted variety cooks faster) into your food processor with 2 cloves of garlic, some sea salt and black pepper, and a splash of your cooking juice from the kale (just so it holds together). Bake for 20-25 mins in a baking dish with a little olive oil brushed on the burgers and in the pan at 350.

Perfect timing for 25 minute germinated brown rice to cook simultaneously.

In the meantime, make your sauce: 2 T tahini, splash of kale/dande green cooking water til you like the consistency, 1/4 c finely chopped parsley, splash of Braggs, sea salt and bl pepper (sorry I don't really measure, so it's just to taste). A hit of ginger root would have been nice too, next time!

And then for dessert, goat balls, I mean, coconut almond macaroons:
food process:
equal parts sprouted almonds and coconut flakes
add 1-2 t gf bourbon vanilla
dash of sea salt
3-4 large spoonfuls of coconut oil
pulse til it looks like it will form balls, adding more vanilla or oil as needed.
I don't miss the agave, but I guess you could add honey, agave or maple syrup at will. You're on your own there, since I have a no sugar diet, so both recipes are candida/bacteria kill-friendly! yay.
More tips: coconut oil is a good for you saturated fat that also has anti-fungal properties and is in general very healing.

enjoy xo

Baking Madness!

As I am whiling away my day off -- baking, making soup, practicing for an upcoming show and doing yoga, I am anticipating a yucky phone call. The one where I find out the results of my latest food allergy blood test.

Last week yielded some good milestones sought after and achieved, followed by some crashing and burning. So, there's been a bit of a pity party this week, and probably I will have some more bad news delivered today (my DH is back in full force, along with some other symptoms that have been kept at bay -- hoping I haven't developed more sensitivities/allergies, but it seems unlikely, given my state of inflammation). So, let the party continue!

pity party included:

turkey bacon BLAC's (bacon, lettuce, avocado, cheddar -- with sauerkraut, essentially a Reuben!
rice chips (Lundberg farms sea salt variety)
some sips of oogave root beer (g-f agave nectar root beer!)
scookies (see recipe below)
a half glass of Orleans Hill Organic and Sulfite-free Syrah
nightshade free homemade minestrone soup
buckwheat amaranth coconut loaf (see recipe below)

I went off-recipe with the scookies, but I experimented today and came up with this measured out recipe to share:

Scookies
half cookie, half scone. you decide. either way, they're really hottt with hot cocoa or tea.

cut together with a fork or pastry cutter:
1/2 c brown rice flour
1/2 c tapioca starch
1/2 c almond meal
1/2 t baking powder
1/2 t sea salt
2 T spectrum shortening
2 T coconut oil, softened (or 4 T butter, Earth Bal, etc)

add:
1 egg, beaten
3-4 T honey
1/2 c pureed pumpkin
1-2 t bourbon vanilla

fold in:
handful of dried cherries, chocolate chips or whatever you're feeling

drop spoonfuls onto parchment-lined baking sheet
bake at 350 8-10 mins

yields 9-12 scookies

YUM!


now for the loaf:

buckwheat amaranth coconut loaf

for your 2 lb loaf breadmaker...

1 1/2 c almond milk
3 eggs, beaten
2 T yoghurt
3 T honey
2 T app cid vin
1/8 c olive oil
mix and add:
1 c buckwheat flour
1 c brown rice flour
1 c amaranth flour
1/2 c coconut flour
1/2 c tapioca starch
1 t sea salt
1 t xanthan or guar gum
form a well in center and add in 1 T yeast

approx 4 hours later, you will have a yummy loaf to make sandwiches with or serve with soup (I made a homemade nightshade free minestrone soup = yum).

enjoy! happy 2011~

Peach-Raspberry Pie, soundtrack by Ramases and Myrdhin

Good eve! I am typing this as I am waiting for the pie crust to come to room temp so that I can work with it. I am rolling it out in between two pieces of parchment, as it is my first gluten free rolled out pie crust experience...the rest I have done have been the pressed-in kind. I wanted a two-crust pie! I was inspired by an apple pie recipe in the book Gluten Free Girl by Shauna James Ahern, who also has a lovely website. So, here I go.

Tonight's soundtrack for baking and cooking have been these two moody lps:

Myrdhin s/t Celtic harp music from 1974...good stuff. don't be scared away by his photo...



also: Ramases 'Space Hymns' - really, words can't describe this album. you'll have to check it out for yourself to understand the magic. just put it on and start baking...

gluten free pie crust: (for a 2-crust pie)

1 1/2 c sorghum flour
1/2 c tapioca flour
3T sweet rice flour
1/4 t sea salt
3 t sugar (I use a squirt of honey)
8 T butter/or, vegan: 3 T coconut oil/4-5 T soy-free earth balance or yr fave shortening
1 egg/or egg replacer
2T apple cider vinegar
1/4 c ice water, just enough to hold dough together

(I used one egg and the coco oil/e. bal combo -- less dairy is better for me. I can see after eating it how butter would be really perfect...sigh, someday...)

food process dry ingred together. add butter or e.b./coco oil. process til it looks like small pea-sized lumps. while it's processing, add egg and vinegar. then drizzle in a little water at a time, just until the dough can hold together.

take it out and halve it. put each in between two pcs of parchment and refrigerate overnight if possible, or for a few hours.
take it out 20 mins before you want to start rolling it out. keep it in the parchment -- gf pie crust likes to be sticky:



preheat your oven to 400.
slice (evenly) about 6-8 peaches, thaw some frozen raspberries (about 1/2 c) or use fresh; place all fruit in a bowl. add: 1/4 c agave or other sweetener, 1T kuzu dissolved in 2T apricot nectar or other juice, 1t fresh grated ginger root, 1t cinnamon, 1t vanilla. stir gently.

roll out your bottom crust and carefully place it in the pie plate. it will break apart -- it doesn't matter. it will be forgiving when it bakes! fill it with fruit:



(I needed more peaches...)

roll out your top crust. place it on top, crimp your edges however you desire and with a sharp knife slice some air vents in a pretty star pattern on top. brush it w/ milk and sprinkle cinnamon-sugar on top if you want.



place it in the oven at 400 for 10-15 mins. turn it down to 350 and bake for another 30 mins. (this is where you might need to switch your soundtrack to another album while it is baking...) if your edges start getting too browned cover them w/ foil. put your feet up and enjoy the celtic harp stylings of Myrdhin!

pull your pie out when it's done and let it cool for a bit before you try to cut into it. et voila!


highly recommended topping: Luna and Larry's organic coconut bliss -- naked coconut or vanilla flavors, in your local natural foods store's frozen section with the sorbets. gluten, dairy, soy and cane sugar free! sweetened with agave. enjoy!