Shrimp Scampi Over Cauliflower

Shrimp Scampi Over Cauliflower

Shrimp Scampi Over Cauliflower

This is so easy and so delicious!  

In a 10" frying pan melt:

4 tablespoons coconut oil


Add to the frying pan: 

3 cloves fresh, minced garlic
1 teaspoon parsley
1 teaspoon chives
1 - 12 ounce bag of peeled, raw shrimp that has been rinsed and soaked for about 10 minutes

Sea salt, to taste
Cook over medium heat for about 8 minutes or until the shrimp is pink

Meanwhile, boil 1/2 head cauliflower cut into florets or 1/2 bag of frozen cauliflower in a covered saucepan until it can be pierced with a fork, about 6 minutes.  Drain The cauliflower.  Serve it with the shrimp and sauce over it.  (It could be served over rice or noodles for non-SCD.)

Enjoy!

Apple Almond Bars

Apple Almond Bars

Apple Almond Bars

I'm still fairly early on my SCD* adventure hoping to heal my stomach.  I was wanting something that was yummy, easy and SCD friendly.  This is what I came up with.  They would be amazing with a variety of other flavorings like cinnamon and cloves or other SCD legal extracts like almond or maple.  They are SCD legal, as well as being low carb, gluten free and dairy free if the yogurt topping is omitted.

Apple Almond Bars
Makes 9 cookies

Preheat the oven to 350F.  Prepare an 8" square cake pan with an olive or coconut oil cooking spray with no added ingredients or butter the pan.  Set it aside.

Place the following ingredients in a mixing bowl:

1 cup blanched almond flour
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/3 cup raw honey
2 tablespoons coconut oil, liquid state (above 70F)
2 teaspoons Homemade Vanilla Extract
1/4 teaspoon salt ("Real Salt" or Himalayan)

Combine them well and spread the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top.  Bake the bars for about 20 minutes or until they are just becoming golden.  Cool and cut into bars.  

I served mine with honey sweetened SCD yogurt and blueberries.  (Omit the yogurt for IC.)  Heavenly!

Enjoy!

*SCD = The Specific Carbohydrate Diet by Elaine Gottschall 


Simultaneously published on my other blog, here.

Protocol for a Flare

Protocol for a Flare

Protocol for a Flare

I had to have my gallbladder taken out by emergency surgery around Christmastime last year, 2015.  To be very honest, I've been struggling since.  I've ended up back in the emergency room three times and the hospital twice for several days at a time for severe abdominal pain.  The last time, in February, they did upper and lower scopes on me and discovered that the lining of my stomach is inflamed and that a lot of the pain I am experiencing is because of my back.  I've had arthritis due to injuries since my late twenties, and I have multiple herniated disks; so it is not surprising that my back would be causing me issues.

With the diagnosis of an inflamed stomach lining, I decided to go on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet.  The diet is described in detail in the book, Breaking the Vicious Cycle, by Elaine Gottschall.  It was designed specifically for inflammatory bowel disease, celiac disease, crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis and other intestinal conditions.  My sister has crohn's and was at the point of needing radical surgery.  She asked me to research alternatives and I discovered Elaine Gottschall's book.  She did the diet and reversed her crohn's.  With that knowledge, I decided that it certainly wouldn't hurt me; and most likely, it would help!

This link will take you to Amazon.com where you can purchase the book and I will recieve a small affiliate credit.  Thank you so much!

I began the diet the day after I got home from my last trip to the hospital.  I immediately improved.  I have been doing it for about a month now.  I've lost several pounds and inches around my midsection.  My pain level is much better, I'm sleeping better, and my tummy hasn't been hurting.

Well, it hadn't been until a couple of days ago.  I ate some dried fruit without thinking clearly about what I was doing.  I had some stewed prunes, and a couple of hours later I had some dried dates.  Within about three hours I had severe diarrhea and horrible burning pain in my stomach.  The first day and part of the second I tried to continue eating.  Then a friend of mine on the Breaking the Vicious Cycle:  Specific Carbohydrate Diet Facebook Group suggested that I stop eating solids for a time until I am feeling better.  He said, 

Sometimes it's best not to eat it all but just stay on non-acidic fluids with lots of honey...Putting any type of food in that will cause digestion and scarring or scraping as it moves along and digestion is the last thing that you want. Isn't it?

That seemed like really wise advice, so I stopped trying to eat any solid foods.  Now, this doesn't mean I'm not taking in any nourishment.  Actually, I am quite comfortable, food wise, and actually, I'm feeling a whole lot better.  

One of the things I learned while I was at the hospital and subsequently is that pain control is really a lot more important than I ever gave it credit.  When my pain is out of control, so many other things go out of control as well.  Is the the pain that is causing my problem or the problem causing the pain?  It seems like it is a vicious circle to me.  Much of my protocol is geared at pain control.  It is concert of food and medication seeking to balance each other with the end being restored functioning.  My goal is to document what I'm doing and why.  My hope is that it will help someone else along the way.

My Personal Protocol for a Flare:

Bone broth with egg stirred in, aka "Cream of Whatever Soup" without the spinach -- this provides easily digestable minerals and protein that don't process in the stomach.
Weak peppermint tea -- steeped for only 3 minutes, soothes the entire digestive tract and is anti-inflammatory.
Warm or room temperature water -- soothing to the digestive tract and maintains hydration.
Honey -- raw, local honey can be stirred into the water or tea or eaten off of a spoon.  It has many healing benefits as this article describes.
Warm packs -- offers comfort to a very sore tummy.
Pain medication -- either Tylenol or prescription offers pain relief, as needed, and should be taken along with the bone broth and egg to protect the stomach lining.
Hyland Leg Cramp Pills -- Although these are not SCD "legal," I have discovered that they not only help with leg cramps but other muscle spasms, as well.  I have not found anything else that works as well as these tablets do.  I take them 2 at a time, as needed.
Topical pain relief -- I use essential oils and other topical creams to help with the pain.  I use the Now brand Peppermint and fennel oils which are good for digestive issues.  (Clicking the link will go to PureFormulas where high quality supplements can be purchased.  I will recieve a small referral credit if anything is purchased through this link.)
Benadryl -- if allergies are involved.  I use the WalMart brand, dye-free liquid gels.
Stay down and rest!  This is actually harder than it might seem.

After things are beginning to calm down:
Add diluted home made fresh juice in small amounts. I started with a small serving of carrot and apple because I tolerate both well.  Be sure and chew your juices, as described in this article:  

Benefits of Chewing Your Juice
While you are chewing, your body is figuring out how many enzymes and what kind it will need to produce in order to digest this bite. It is also allowing the temperature of food to match its own, as well as absorbing the sugars from the carbohydrate digestion directly into the bloodstream before you even swallow. So it only makes sense to drink a fresh juice slowly, mindfully, holding each sip in the mouth for a short while before swallowing. Remember—it's ultimately all about how much of the good stuff the body will be able to absorb and make its own. This practice will ensure the best assimilation of the juice you took effort and time to extract.

Then try as tolerated:

Soft scrambled eggs

Applesauce in very small amounts

Homemade SCD yogurt

Again, I hope this will help someone else along their way.

Blessings!

Cheese-flavored Non-dairy Cheese Spread

Cheese-flavored Non-dairy Cheese Spread

Cheese-flavored Non-dairy Cheese Spread

First, prepare a batch of Almond Cheese.  To the finished cheese product, add 

1 1/2 teaspoons nutritional yeast (gives the "cheesy" taste)
1 teaspoon whey (from the Almond Cheese making process)
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/8 teaspoon turmeric

Mix it well and store covered.  Use as a dip or in recipes.

Gluten Free Tortilla Chips -- Grain Free!

Gluten Free Tortilla Chips

Grain Free Tortilla Chips

These are great for folks who cannot tolerate any grains at all.

Gluten Free Tortilla Chips -- Grain free!
Makes 1 shell and about 2 dozen chips

Pre-heat the oven to 325F.

Measure into a mixing bowl with an electric stand mixer (I would not recommend using a hand mixer as the dough is quite stiff!)

2 cups besan (chickpea, lentil, garbanzo bean) flour
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
4 to 6 tablespoons warm water

Mix it well, until a stiff dough forms.  Add more water if necessary -- In the picture above, I had only added the 1/4 cup water and ended up adding 2 more tablespoons.  

Knead the dough, with a dough hook if possible, for about 5 minutes until the dough is uniform.  Divide the dough into two equal balls.  

Spray a sheet of parchment paper with olive oil cooking spray.  I had to spray the dough and my hands so the dough could be worked.  Work the first piece of dough into a ball and place it onto the sprayed parchment paper.

 Spray the ball with cooking oil spray again and cover it with the paper.
Roll the dough out in a large rectangle, about 24" x 10" or the size of the work space.

Cut the dough into the desired shapes and sizes for the chips.  I chose rectangles.  A few were too thick, so I rolled them again, and cut them in halves.

Spray a baking sheet with olive oil cooking spray and arrange the chips so they are not touching.  

Spray the tops of the chips with more cooking oil spray.  Bake them at 325F for about 8 minutes and serve them immediately.  If there are extras, store them in a sealed container.  Reheat them at 325F for about 6 minutes to re-crisp them.

Enjoy!!