Heart of Cooking

What did you eat this week?  I’d love to hear about your meals, and share mine with you!

This past week was one of those weeks where I decided pretty much a few hours before dinnertime to decide what to make, but everything turned out yummy (well, in my opinion at least!)

My GAPS Weekly Meal Un-Plan

(gluten-free, dairy, free, starch-free, sugar-free, soy-free, legume-free)

Dinners (leftovers for lunch):

• Turkey Tacos with Cabbage wraps
• Coconut Fried Chicken and Mashed Cauliflower
• Beef Marinara with Zucchini Noodles
• Salads:  hard boiled eggs or chicken, peas, shredded carrots,  pea shoots, garden tomatoes, cooked and cooled beets, etc.
• Egg wraps with Sautéed Cabbage, Shredded Carrots and Onions
• Chicken Legs with Barbecue sauce and Steamed Broccoli

Desserts:

• Blueberry Muffin Cake
• Coconut Vanilla Bean Ice Cream – I had a have a filling on a cavity this week so eating vanilla ice cream seemed only natural…

Breakfast:

• Blueberry Yogurt Smoothies – just yogurt, blueberries and bananas
• Banana Pancakes – just bananas and eggs
• Eggs…

Ferments, etc:

• Soaked and Dehydrated nuts
• Kombucha
• Yogurt

Well, that’s me!  I’m always looking for new ideas so please do share!

I haven’t been blogging as much as I would like the past couple of months or so, mainly due to the distractions of buying a house.  But the great news is we’re closing on Wednesday and will be moving within a week or so after that.

So time for a little catch up.  I’ve developed two new obsessions/passions in the kitchen.  The first one was the result of an awesome birthday present my friend gave me – a slow cooker.  You’d think I would have owned one of these already but for whatever reason, this is my first one.

I love it!  And the timing couldn’t be better because I’ve been using it a lot when we’ve been busy during the days and I know I’m not going to have time to cook very much in the evenings.  I’m also planning on using it quite a bit in the next week or so because of working on the house once we close and then moving next week.

So far I’ve been using recipes from Stephanie O’Dea’s blog and for the most part have loved everything.  She is also the author of the cookbook Make it Fast, Cook it Slow, which I have yet to purchase but plan to buy soon.

My second new obsession which I am quite thrilled about is making ice cream with my new ice cream maker.  With summer approaching and not being able to eat ANY of the ice cream that is sold in stores, I decided that it was time to take the plunge into the homemade ice cream world.  (We can’t eat sugar or agave, only honey, and only coconut or homemade yogurt for milk).

So far I’ve tried this awesome Lavender Vanilla Coconut Ice Cream recipe which was great, Raspberry Coconut Ice Cream based on Elana’s Strawberry Coconut ice cream recipe, Coffee Ice Cream made with yogurt from the Grain Free Gourmet cookbook, and another Coconut Vanilla Ice Cream that I created.

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Do you need an Egg-Free weekly menu planner for your limited diet?

After I released the GAPS/Paleo and Elimination Diet Menu Planner in February, I realized how necessary an Egg-Free version of this menu planner was because many people emailed me and asked me if and when I would have an egg-free version available.

So, today I am announcing that the GAPS Egg-Free weekly menu planner is available!  This menu planner is very similar to the other GAPS menu planner.  The only difference is I have either converted the recipes that contain eggs to be egg-free or I have replaced them with egg-free recipes.  I also updated the shopping list for the menu planners.

Click here to learn more about the menu planner or to order.

So, here is the rundown of what kind of menu planner this is:

Full GAPS

SCD

Paleo

Elimination

Yeast-free (honey and fruit are included in the menu)

Egg-Free

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First off, I apologize again for my absence on my blog.  We now have a contract on a house and are in the midst of all the details before we close.

Also, on a personal note, I am finding that winter time has been urging me towards resting more and being more internal.  I mentioned in one of my New Year’s posts that I am not suffering from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) this season like I have in the past.  What I feel is happening instead is that I am actually enjoying the “yin” energy of the winter.  This is mostly showing up as working less, relaxing more, taking more baths, and not going out as much.  It seems like it started shortly before the massive winter wonderland we received a few weeks ago. To me, this is a real sign that my being is balancing out and becoming more in tune with nature, the way we are supposed to be.

New Changes to my Menu Planners and Website:

At the same time, I am very excited about some upcoming changes to my website.  I am not ready to go into all the details of what is going to change but I feel I want to start talking about them at some level.

These changes are in response to the needs people with multiple food allergies have.  When I started my menu planners, I didn’t really know what I was getting into.  But I did realize that making menu planners for people with food allergies posed some real problems to solve.  The main one being – everyone is allergic to something different.  There are common food allergens, but from there, there are so many other foods that people can be allergic to.  Beyond that, people, especially children, have many preferences of what they like to eat and what they don’t like.

I have been solving this problem by creating menu planners for specific diets.  The response to this has been great and so far I have the following menu planners.  Most of them are for four weeks of menu plans:

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If you’ve been waiting for the GAPS menu planner, it is now available!

I am very happy to be able to offer this menu planner for people who follow Full GAPS, SCD or Paleo diets.  This menu planner is also dairy-free with nut-free options.

It is also a great menu planner as an elimination diet or for people who are on a yeast-free diet.

I have personally found this diet to be extremely helpful in my own life.  I truly can’t believe the changes that have occurred in my life as a result of following a grain, starch, sugar and yeast free diet.

To name just a few major changes, my lifelong mood swings and depression have almost completely vanished.  I have much more energy and the anxiety that I began to experience postpartum has been replaced with a peaceful and happy mind and heart!

I am really full of gratitude for the diet coming into my life!  I have been writing about these changes in my blog, and will be continuing with my post-postpartum experiences very soon.  You can read about my experiences with GAPS here.

Who can benefit from the GAPS diet?  (Find out more here at the official GAPS website)

Anyone with the following symptoms or experiences in life:

• Depression
• Autism
• ADHD
• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
• Learning disabilities
• Schizophrenia
• Anxiety
• Nightwakings
• Behavioral problems
• Hyperactivity
• Bipolar disorder
• Ecxema
• Asthma
• Colic
• Failure to Thrive
• Fussy eaters
• IBS – Irritable Bowel Syndrome
• Frequent colds, flu or ear infections
• Dyslexia
• Dyspraxia
• Not breast-fed
• Have had numerous courses of antibiotics
• Chronic cystitis
• Mood swings
• Poor memory
• Difficulties to concentrate
• Underweight
• Crohn’s disease
• Ulcerative colitis
• Any other digestive disorder

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I am very excited to announce the new Valentine’s Day Menu Planner for Limited Diets!

Many people like to spend a nice meal with their spouse or significant other on Valentine’s Day.

However, if you or your loved one is on a limited diet, this can be more complicated than making reservations at your favorite restaurant.

What if you were to surprise your loved one with a home cooked, romantic meal?

Maybe there is a menu that your significant other would love to eat at a restaurant but normally contains their food restrictions.

When I had the idea of making a Valentine’s Day Menu Planner, I thought of what kinds of meals that people on limited diets would love to eat – if only they could eat the ingredients!  I also considered food that is known for being “romantic…”

So, I put together a simple but delicious and allergen-friendly menu that I believe almost anyone could enjoy, even if their diet is very limited!

Here is the menu:

Veggie Lasagna (I am including three recipes so that you can use the one that work best for your diet)

• Grain-Free version (made with egg noodles – these taste just like real noodles!)
• Grain and Egg-Free version (made with zucchini noodles)
• Gluten-Free version (made with brown rice noodles)

Strawberry Avocado Salad with Crispy Pecans

Three Desserts to choose from to fit your diet:

• Hazelnut Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Icing (Grain-Free)
  
• Vanilla Cake with Raspberry Sauce and Vanilla Icing (Grain and Chocolate Free)
• Devil Food’s Chocolate Cupcakes (Gluten, Nut and Egg Free)

All dishes are free of the following:

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If you lead a busy life and have a family to feed, you probably know all too well that it takes some effort and time to plan your meals for the week.  However, you have some backup options like frozen dinners or take-out when you’re in a pinch.  Life is hectic but you have some options.

Now, imagine a family whose members have food allergies and/or food restrictions.  Maybe this family can’t eat dairy, wheat, gluten, soy, corn and sugar.  Maybe the youngest member is also allergic to eggs.

Unfortunately, there are many families who face this reality every day.  If you don’t have these food restrictions yourself, you may not realize how much this limits one’s diet.

Eating out is “out”

A family on such a diet has a hard time eating out, if at all.  One main problem is that most restaurants use “vegetable” oil or soy oil to cook their food in.  This basically eliminates eating-out.

Fortunately, there are a lot of restaurants popping up that offer gluten-free options.  However, sometimes it is hard to get the wheat/gluten and dairy-free combo at a restaurant.  For instance, they may put dry milk powder in the gluten-free pizza crust.

Grocery shopping is a chore

Even buying food at the store becomes a chore.  You basically have to read all the ingredients lists and even then, finding foods that are free of dairy, wheat, gluten, soy, corn, sugar and eggs is tough!

This is why I create my menu planners.  I personally am on a very limited diet that forces me to cook basically everything we eat.  If I don’t do some planning for the week’s meals, I usually end up spending a lot of time driving back and forth between home and the grocery store.  I also end up spending more money because every time I go, I end up buying things I didn’t plan on.

The Nourishing Foods Menu Planners

My plan is to create menu planners for just about any limited diet.  My next series of menu planners are going to be for the extremely limited diet such as the following (these are subject to change as I get more feedback from people)

• The GAPS diet: this is a wheat/gluten, grain, starch and sugar-free diet that helps people’s digestive systems to heal.   This diet also works great for people on “low-carb” diets or the Paleo diet because it is free of grains and uses high protein nuts and seeds for flours.
• Egg-free, Dairy-free and Gluten-Free
• Nut-free, Legume-free, Wheat/Gluten-free and Dairy-free
• Common-allergen Free:  free of wheat, gluten, dairy, soy, corn, eggs, nuts, fish, peanuts
• Kid-Friendly menus

As of now, I have the following weekly menu planners available:

Meat and Seafood Diets:

• Wheat-free and Gluten-free Menu Planner
• Gluten-free and Casein-free Menu Planner
• Dairy-free Menu Planner
• Wheat/Gluten-free, Dairy-free and Soy-free Menu Planner
• Nightshade, Wheat/Gluten-free, Dairy-free and Soy-Free Menu Planner
• Holiday Menu Planner for Limited Diets – this is a grain, dairy, soy, corn, and sugar free menu
• Thanksgiving Menu Planner

Seafood/Vegetarian Diets

• Nightshade-free, Wheat/Gluten-free, Dairy-free and Soy-free

Dessert

• Just Desserts for the Limited Diet

Gift a Gift of Nourishing Foods to someone on a limited diet this Holiday Season!

I recently updated my Gift a Gift page where you can gift your friend or family member with one of my many menu planners.  I also offer hourly consulting over the phone as well as personal chef services for the Washington DC, Baltimore and Frederick, Maryland areas.

If you’re looking for a gift that keeps on giving, that can really help someone improve the quality of their life and can bring renewed inspiration to their dinner table, buy a menu planner for your loved one or friend.  They will love it and continue to thank you!

Give a Gift today!

Cranberry Raspberry Relish from Eatingwell.com

I had so much fun with the Thanksgiving Menu Planner that I am very excited about creating menu planners for the coming holidays as well!

So excited, that I am actually going to create both a Holiday Menu Planner as well as “Just Desserts” recipe booklet for people on limited diets.

I grew up celebrating Christmas, but if this is not the holiday you celebrate, these menu planners and recipes could most likely work for any festive celebration and holiday.

The Holiday Menu Planner:

I think for many families, having a nice breakfast on either Christmas morning or another special day during the holidays is very common.  So I decided to include a breakfast menu to the holiday menu planner as well as a dinner menu.

Once again, the menu planner is going to be free of the following foods, so that it can work for almost any limited diet:

no dairy -  (butter may be used in some recipes but there is always another option that is dairy-free)

no wheat or gluten – all grains and products containing gluten

no grains

no sugar - only natural sweeteners will be used, such as raw honey and maple syrup

no soy – no soybean oil, lecithin, and other soy products

limited starches

no corn

no beans and legumes

egg-free options

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Zucchini Pasta Noodles

It ’s been somewhat of a crazy busy week.  The main thing that threw my schedule off was that my computer crashed last Tuesday night.  My husband ran the anti-virus software on both of our computers Tuesday evening and when we woke up Wednesday, neither of our computers would boot up.

Long story short, my computer is running again thanks to my husband.  But it took some time to get programs reinstalled, etc.   We still don’t know what happened with the spyware…

I was planning on working Wednesday morning, but I couldn’t so…. I made chicken broth and yogurt instead.  It was kind of weird.  Usually I’d be a bit frantic, running around trying to figure out how to get my work done.  But I felt like the situation was beyond my control.  It was actually nice to get the chicken broth started from the chicken carcass and meat from the night before.  I also was glad to get the yogurt going since it takes a whole day to ferment in the dehydrator.

I actually have to attribute my mood and ability to deal with the stress to the GAPS diet.  I have to admit that by the end of Wednesday, I was very tired.  But for the most part, I know I dealt with this much better than I normally would before I went grain-free.

The other thing that kind of astonished me when I thought about my week is that I cooked a wonderful meal every night and was able to plan ahead for the next day even though I was super-busier than normal.  However, I didn’t take one picture this week of food.  I guess that was the thing that got dropped amongst the busy schedule.  (The picture of the zucchini pasta is an old picture).  Here is what we ended up having for dinner each night.

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Gluten-free and Dairy-free Pecan Pie

Hooray!  Thanksgiving is coming and if you have a limited diet, you will have some amazing and delicious recipes to make!  The Thanksgiving Menu Planner is now available and it is specifically for limited diets that are free of foods like gluten, wheat, dairy, corn, sugars, starches, nightshades, and peanuts.  If you’re egg-free or nut-free, you’ll also find some great options to create a beautiful allergen-free menu for the holidays!

I want to thank my subscribers who gave me some wonderful ideas and recipes!

• Lori – she had to idea to have snacks for hungry children on the menu
• Sarah – pumpkin bars with “cream cheese” frosting
• Rebecca – stuffing and cranberry sauce recipes
• Sarah – traditional green bean casserole – I made a healthy version!
• Holly – whipped coconut cream recipe
• Rahma – sauerkraut – I included a lacto-fermented version so that people have a digestive aid on Thanksgiving
• Andrea – pumpkin dip with apples recipe
• Anonymous – Pecan Pie
• Ann – Butternut Squash and Apples
• Wardeh at GNOWFGLINS.com offered her Egg-Free Pumpkin Pie as well as the Coconut Icing

Here is the final menu:

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