GAPS Recipes

I have been scouring the internet for GAPS recipes, because although I am only on intro my 16 year old son and my hubby are doing full GAPS and I wanted to offer a decent variety of foods (mainly to stop the complaining that was emitting from said teenager!).

So Im posting a few recipes that I have found and tried over the last week, and one that I made up when I needed to use up some left over ingredients.

Ill post them in separate blog entries and that way they will be easier to find under the labels (for future reference).

The first recipe is from Grainfree Foodies- The original recipe is here:(http://grainfreefoodie.blogspot.com/2009/04/banana-caramel-sticky-buns.html)

These girls are kitchen geniuses. I use a lot of their recipes. They call these tasty morsels "buns" I have renamed them muffins as that is what they more closely resemble in my opinion.

I have also tweeked the recipe slightly. We dont eat coconut flour at present as I have heard it is high carb so I subsituted almond meal for the coconut flour. These muffins are the most delectible GAPS foods I have ever tasted. Not quite like a sticky date pudding but close.

Banana Caramel Sticky Muffins

Ingredients for buns

1 Large very ripe banana, mashed
6 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup melted butter or coconut oil
1/2 cup honey
1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups almond meal
1/4 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 180 C.

Mix all ingredients with a wire whisk. Pour into a well-greased muffin tin or use silicone liners (I used cupcake papers. They did stick a little bit so you could spray some coconut oil on the papers if you find this an issue)

Ingredients for topping

• 1 cup chopped crispy pecans (from Nourishing Traditions or WAPF)
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup butter
• 2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 Tablespoon almond meal
• 2 Tablespoons shredded coconut

Mix all ingredients for topping with a fork. Crumble topping on buns.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, until cooked through.

GAPS Intro, Stage 2

There is only one word for what I have been experiencing over the last 4 days.... Detox, or as gapsters like to call it Die-off. (Also known as the Herxheimer Reaction)

It is not an enjoyable process, as my dear husband and children will tell you! Basically when the body starts to kill off bad bacteria, and cleanse toxins, it goes into a healing crisis, where all the symptoms that you are trying to overcome by doing this diet come back in greater intensity than normal.

So for me this has meant a week of being very grumpy, critical, depressed, overwhelmed by small things (like a teen trying to show me how many push ups he can do, for the FIFTH time - and all Im thinking is "I dont care let along have time for this, Ive got to make more soup"!).

Well you probably get some understanding of my state of mind! Ive also been tired a lot and had a sore throat on and off even though Im not eating any illegal foods.

It has not been easy but my GAPS support group have been great and it helps to know that this reaction is normal (when I feel like Im going crazy!!).

As the title of this entry states, I have moved onto stage 2. Mainly because I really needed more than just soup. I was always hungry. So I have added, avacado, saurerkraut and ghee. Ive also been drinking copious amounts of ginger tea, and have started really enjoying the flavour of it.

Ive been doing the enema's every other day, and am feeling brave about increasing it to the daily regime. (The next bit of info is for fellow Gapsters who need info on enema's, so family and friends can skip this bit!)

Now about enema's - everyone has a different tale to tell, and I have heard that "it feels great", "it is so easy", "I can hold a litre of water a time" etc.... well I havent found them to be particularly easy or great, and I can only hold in about 200-500 mls, before my insides are gurgling and Im crossing my legs and testing my resolve to hold on for a few minutes more.

What I have found that helps is to do a systematic, hold then purge, hold then purge approach over about an hour. This seems to work quite well and I have it on authority from a long term enema user that this is the best way! I can hold a little bit more fluid each time and for a little longer. Still a lot of gurgling and leg crossing but I feel like Im getting the hang of it.

What I have been eating:

Breakfast:

• Mineral supplement and RO water first thing
• Hot water with 1 Tablespoon of Coconut oil
• Soup with kraut and ghee

Lunch

• Soup with half an Avacado and kraut
• Ginger tea

Dinner

• Two bowls of soup with Avacado, kraut and ghee
• More ginger tea
• Hot water with coconut oil

Epsom salt bath before bed (1 cup of salts - soak for 20 mins)

Great things about this week:

• I know my body is responding as it should be.
• I have actually been enjoying the soups
• Detox baths
• Im loosing weight
• My gaps group!

Not so great:

• Having to cook food for the rest of the family that I cant eat. (When you feel like Im going out of my mind anyway, this can really do you in!!)
• Having the children remind you what a grump you are being! (Very little sympathy here)
• Enema's - yuck

GAPS Intro - Stage 1

Well I started off on the GAPS Intro diet 4 days ago.

To be honest I havent done very well at sticking to the "soup only" policy and therefore Stage 1 is taking me longer than expected to complete.

The first day I ran out of soup and got hungry after dinner. I munched on a banana and some butter with coconut. The second day I went to a wedding and although I didnt go to the reception David wanted to go via the UNI library on the way home and the whole thing ended up taking such a long time I was starting to feel dizzy from lack of food (I had only had 1 bowl of soup for breakfast), so we stopped at the bakery!!

The third day, I did really well but again ran out of soup and ate some fruit. I also did a lot of baking for Jordan (I started him on the GAPS diet 4 days ago, but he is not doing Stage 1 yet. So I have been very busy in the kitchen trying to keep up with the quantitiy of food that he needs to eat), and it is very hard to bake and not taste the food to see if it turned out ok. All the recipes I am trying are new so I want to know if I should repeat them, chuck them or tweak them to re-use another time.

So here I am on day four, still eating soup!!

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Lessons I have learned: Make the next batch of soup when Im still half way through the current batch.

Take soup in a thermos even if only intending to be out for a couple of hours.

Postpone Stage 1 if trying new recipes!!

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Having said all that, I am definately seeing some detox results regardless of my adhoc approach. Last night I was extremely nauseas at bed time and even when and got a bucket to put beside the bed. Fortunately there was no need for the bucket during the night.

Today I had soup for breakfast but at lunch time I tried to eat some and felt sick again, so just drank some water.

Tonight I am feeling better and getting my soup ready for tomorrow!

As far as the enema situation that I mentioned in the last post - that hasnt happened yet. I thought I would just pop down to the chemist and pick one up, but I ended up needing to order one on the internet!

The enema kit arrived today, so that is on the list for tomorrow. (Dont want to try it before bed!).

The amazing thing so far is the improvement I have seen in Jordan. For as long as I can remember, Jordan has had a constant runny nose and an equally constant (and annoying) habit of picking it. Well, since he started GAPS his nose has stopped running and I havent seen him even scratch his nose let alone pick it!! Whooo hoooo. Im such a happy mumma.

I havent seen any impovement in his acne yet but I am expecting that to improve once his fruit intake is reduced. (He's still eating about a kilo of apples a day - even though that is not part of the GAPS diet!). I need to take baby steps with Jordan so he doesnt completely reject the diet.

Im off to take a detox bath and watch a movie with hubby.

GAPS Intro

Today I started the GAPS Intro diet. "What is the intro diet and why am I starting it now, after I have been a Gapster for several months?" I hear you ask.

Well basically the Intro diet is a cleansing rundown and I really felt that I needed to get in the swing of the diet before I did the cleanse. It has taken me 9 months of going on and off the diet to finally feel confident in what I am eating.

So why am I on the diet? Well, the full name for the diet is the "Gut and Psychology Syndrome" diet. Its basic premise is that people with unhealthy gut flora often have brain related problems like, autism, schizophrenia, depression, anxiety etc and by removing problem foods from their diet they can restore the natural balance in the gut and stop the gut-brain reactions. (That is a very simplistic explanation it is obviously more complicated than that. Its all very scientific - lots of talk of starch and sugars fermenting in the gut and causing morphine type recations in the brain or something. For more information see the links at the bottom of the page).

I suffer from varying moods, that sometimes feel like they have taken control of me. So when one of my girlfriends suggested the diet I was very interested.

The amazing thing is IT ACTUALLY WORKS! Just removing all grains, sugars and starches from my diet and I am a different person. Who knew it could be so easy!

My symptoms weren't just pshychological, I have also struggled with allergies for years, and had ongoing health issues like fatigue, chronic tonsilitis and sinus issues, eczema, hay fever... you get the picture.

So what can I eat? Basically I eat lots of fresh and fremented foods and lots of fat. Meat, veges, fruit, nuts, some legumes, loads of bone broth and sauerkraut and eggs. I eat butter, lard, coconut oil, but no vegetable oils as they mostly hydrogenated. The only exception is cold pressed virgin olive oil.

I usually make pancakes and muffins etc from nut meal instead of grain flour. I can use honey in recipes as it is a monosaccharide, whereas sugar, maple syrup, fructose etc are all polysaccharides and cause a bad reaction.

So back to the Intro diet: Basically the first day is all about soup! It wasnt nearly as hard as I thought it would be.

http://gapsdiet.com/INTRODUCTION_DIET.html

Breakfast: Reverse Osmosis water with liquid mineral suppliment and lemon juice. Beef and vege soup- stewed all day yesterday and then left on the stove (on low) all day today.

Lunch: more soup with a nice big dollop of ghee.

Dinner: 2 bowls of soup with sauerkraut on top.

Snacks: ginger tea

Bedtime: Soak in epsom salt bath (for extra cleansing properties - and it just feels good).

Tomorrow I brave an enema - wish me luck!!

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Links

A video with the author, telling how her son was healed of sever autism with the diet. http://www.healyourself.com.au/product/gut-and-psychology-syndrome-book-australia-gaps-dr-natasha-campbell-mcbride/

The book: http://www.amazon.com/Gut-Psychology-Syndrome-Depression-Schizophrenia/dp/B0016J7HZU/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1250164278&sr=1-2

Conditions helped by this diet. http://gapsguide.com/about/conditions-addressed-by-gaps/

A fairly good (and long) explanation of the science behind the diet http://www.sustainlane.com/reviews/the-gaps-diet-the-mother-of-all-diets/LTVKD7QC3RN23RUSRVX2DXV3R98X

French women dont get fat

I was in the library last week and on the "new books" table they had a copy of "Fench women dont get fat - The secret of eating for pleasure" by Mirielle Guiliano


I was intrigued by the name and because I was in a hurry I just grabbed it and brought it home to peruse.

I would not normally read a book about diet/weitght control, but after reading the first chapter I am hooked.


The author writes that French women dont get fat because they dont deprive themselves, but they do exercise restraint.

I found this idea fascinating. I have always thought that restraint akin to deprivation and this is probably where my problems with food have stemmed from.


So a little back ground about my situation.


I have had body and diet issues since I was a teenager. (As so many of us have!) And one of my chosen coping mechanisms was to deny myself food and then when I gave in (which I inevitably always did) I would completely over indulge, sometimes to the point of feeling bloated and sick.


I never considered this an "eating disorder" until recently when there was a discussion in my GAPS group about this very problem. Several women shared their own struggles and journeys, with "bingeing" (for want of another word) and I realised that I have been struggling with this same very powerful foe most of my life.

They say that knowledge is power and the the online discussion definately started me contemplating why I live this way and how I might change it.

Reading Guiliano's book I realise that it is a my way of thinking about food that has caused me grief. Because I think I cant have something I want it all the more, and because I am denying myself this thing that I desperately want, I have to eat as much as I can when I have the opportunity because it might be a long time before I get the chance again! (This isnt Guiliano's point it is just what I have discovered about my own thinking).

So back to the book. Guiliano spent a year in US during her teens and gained a lot of weight, eating the average American diet while living with a homestay family. The book is a response to that experience and the ensuing problems and breakthroughs she had when she returned to France.

Basically she had brought back an American diet mentality. One that sees "treat" foods as everyday foods. So her healing journey involved thinking like a French woman again, as they indulge in many fat/sugar rich foods but they only do it as a treat not every day.

I am finding the book fascinating and am allowing the new way of thinking to settle into my psyche. Maybe soon I too will be thinking like a French woman!

Decalogue for Daily Living

I found this list on the blog of another homeschooling mum.
http://sarahs-musings.blogspot.com/ I am not Catholic but I thought it was so beautiful I wanted to include it on my blog. Only for today I will seek to live by its principles.

Decalogue for Daily Living

1. Only for today, I will seek to live the livelong day positively, without wishing to solve the problems of my life all at once.

2. Only for today, I will take the greatest care of my appearance: I will dress modestly; I will not raise my voice; I will be courteous in my behavior; I will not criticize anyone; I will not claim to improve or to discipline anyone except myself.

3. Only for today, I will be happy in the certainty that I was created to be happy, not only in the other world but also in this one.

4. Only for today, I will adapt to circumstances, without requiring all circumstances to be adapted to my own wishes.

5. Only for today, I will devote ten minutes of my time to some good reading, remembering that just as food is necessary to the life of the body, so good reading is necessary to the life of the soul.

6. Only for today, I will do one good deed and not tell anyone about it.

7.Only for today, I will do at least one thing I do not like doing; and if my feelings are hurt, I will make sure no one notices.

8. Only for today, I will make a plan for myself: I may not follow it to the letter, but I will make it. And I will be on guard against two evils: hastiness and indecision.

9. Only for today, I will firmly believe, despite appearances, that the good Providence of God cares for me as no one else who exists in this world.

10. Only for today, I will have no fears. In particular, I will not be afraid to enjoy what is beautiful and to believe in goodness. Indeed, for twelve hours I can certainly do what might cause me consternation were I to believe I had to do it all my life.

Bl. Pope John XXIII

Living outside the accepted "norm"

I have come home from my spinning group feeling yuk.

This group have never been the friendliest bunch so I have alway been careful with how much I say and what content is in that dialogue, but I have been away for the last 2 weeks and today I plum forgot to be careful.

I let it slip that I follow a Weston A Price style diet, after I was offered a biscuit and declined. This led to a lot of questions. Not the inquiring type questions that say "Oh, what is that? Tell us more". The type that say, "What do you mean by being different!! Are you challenging our mainstream lifestyle?!!!"

One of the ladies is a retired nurse turned teacher, and of all the people I have ever met these are the worst kind for thinking outside the box (sorry if any of you lovely people fit into that category - Im sure there are exceptions to my experience!). Well this lady was very offended by my dietary ideas and went to extreme length to suggest some (often bizarre) situations where this diet was not healthy.

I should have laughed, because she was being rediculous, but she was sooo rude to me I just felt angry, offended, and beligerent. What difference does it make to her if my lifestyle is different!!? So unfortunately I argued back, trying to explain some of the science behind my reasoning. I soon realised it was a lost cause and just went back to my spinning.

Obviously my attempt to withdraw from the discussion was not noticed and the next thing she started parroting on about was my choice to homeschool! She wanted to know if I was a qualified teacher, if I had a university degree (like that is any of her business), how would I know if my kids where up to the standard of school kids etc, etc, etc. It was a full frontal attack, and truly nasty.

I answered her questions, but each answer was scoffed at and the next one was loaded to the pistol ready to fire. I was trying not to be rude back but finding it hard to give her an answer without highlighting her own arrogance. (I could have said "gee you are really threatened by my choices", which I have done in the past, but I felt it would not go over well with this woman).

The sad thing was that one of the other ladies agreed with her and kept adding fuel to the fire, and I ended up leaving feeling like I was the one with the problem.

I obviously dont believe I have a problem, but the heat of that moment was so intense I got lost.

Ok, deep breath in, slow breath out.

Back home again and feeling better to have gotten all that off my chest and regain my equilibrium.

Now Im off to make some radical almond meal muffins and some recalcitrant pastries (made with lard!)