Friday, January 15, 2016

Taking the Overwhelming Out of Gluten Free

by Elizabeth Tromm - Used by permission
We have always eaten a pretty good diet, growing, canning, and freezing our food. Cooking from scratch, strictly limiting our sugar intake, etc.  However, last August when I decided we would go gluten free for a couple of specific health reasons, I was OVERWHELMED! Where did I start, how does one simply throw all wheat berries, flour, and gluten out of their kitchen? And what in the world do you use in their place?

MY biggest hurdle was going to be pasta. I LOVE a big plate of pasta. I think somewhere in my blood there are Italian roots, pasta and crusty bread at every meal! It is my comfort food, it is inexpensive, which makes it ideal for a large group of people, and any type of sauce is general super easy to make. What was I going to do?
 
I stumbled across a blog one day and sent a text to my sister along with the blog and told her we should do a seven-day clean eating challenge. Doing things like exercising, eating right, and time management are easier if you have a partner to hold you accountable. She agreed, and we started the challenge. I believe it is called a challenge for a very good reason. If your body is accustomed to something, in my case gluten, then going off of it is challenging for your mood, your digestive system, and your culinary skills.
 
It takes two to three weeks for the gluten cravings to end and your body to adjust and settle down to the new normal. During this time period you might consider hurting your spouse. You might be short tempered with your children. And you might contemplate selling your children’s cats, your husband’s dog, and all other livestock that occupy your farm. Instead of feeling like you are on top of the world you might feel that the world is running over you and you have a mountain to climb just getting out of bed each morning.

But, once you persevere through those first two weeks you won’t regret it for a single minute. After the initial adjustment period, I had more energy, I never had that bloated sluggish “won’t be able to move again” after a meal kind of feeling. I had far less aches and pains in my joints. I was sleeping better at night and waking up able to bounce out of bed, as much as a night owl bounces in the morning, instead of getting up slowly and stiffly. And, I had better clarity of mind.

So where do you start on this journey? I have two favorite blog sites that I cooked from for about two months before I started branching out and being able to take an ordinary recipe and turn it into a clean gluten free recipe.

My favorite site, and the one I recommend to a lot of people, is the http://www.cleaneatingcorner.com. This one has two 7-day challenges and a 14-day challenge. She gives you a grocery list and the recipes for three meals each day and 3 snacks each day for every day of the challenge. It is all laid out and packaged with a bow. Well, no bow, but she does make it SUPER simple and anyone can do it!
 
Once you have gotten your feet wet, and feel a little more adapt in your kitchen with these new ingredients in your cupboards you can peruse her site and find all kinds of recipes for any meal your heart desires.
 
The other blog that I love is http://www.ohsheglows.com. I used a lot of her baking recipes for the holidays. While I do not want my family to be overrun with sweets, I also didn’t want to be a total Grinch. Just because you are clean eating doesn’t mean you can’t still eat things that resemble desserts and sweets. Her pumpkin pie squares are amazing and Mia asked to have them with fruit salad for her birthday. The “graham cracker” that is also used for the pumpkin pie crust, is a favorite in our house as a snack with some homemade almond butter slathered on top and a glass of fresh milk.
 
Those are two of my favorite blogs to get ideas for meals, snacks, and grocery shopping lists. I always like hearing what sites other people love. So leave a comment (https://wingingthislife.wordpress.com/2016/01/12/taking-the-overwhelming-out-of-gluten-fre e/) letting us know where you like to find good recipes.

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