First off, I have NO idea how anyone could CHOOSE to be Gluten and Dairy free, I would cheat on it daily if it were only a choice for me. I was pretty much FORCED into going cold turkey on both gluten AND dairy over a year ago....and it started out super hard and has gradually gotten easier (by easier, I mean I don't want to cry at every meal anymore)
I have received a lot of emails wondering WHY I am full on GF AND DF and I figured it deserved a mention on my blog. For two years I have had SERIOUS stomach pains, the kind where you wonder if your appendix has burst after every single meal. I had been to the emergency room, my Dr., and tried all of the medicines that they had suggested. NOTHING helped me and it gradually got worst to the point that some days after eating I would literally look like I was all of a sudden 5 months pregnant. I was finally told to try out going Dairy Free for two weeks and see how I felt.....and I literally felt better within the first week! I felt SO much better that I honestly didn't even want to eat anything with dairy in it at all because I knew how awful I had felt before. I THOUGHT WE HAD FOUND THE CURE!!!!!! I was okay with going dairy free because I could still load up on breads, and that was really my food of choice anyway!
After being full on Dairy free for 5 months, I started to get a rash all over my face. It was like tiny raised SUPER itchy bumps and they were gradually getting worst! I wanted them OFF MY FACE and went back to every single doctor! They did a ton of blood work and it turned out my liver enzymes were SUPER high! After going back to the Dr. weekly they were continuing to go up at an alarming rate so they had scheduled me for a liver biopsy. (don't ever google "liver biopsy" if they suggest one for you!) Prior to the appointment my allergy Dr. decided to test me going gluten free, along with the dairy free diet I was already on. It was crazy but after just one week my liver enzymes had gone down significantly, and within two weeks they were back to normal. My rash disappeared.....and life was normal again. (with the exception of never being able to eat gluten again!)
I have been dairy free for 19 months and gluten free for 13 months and I can honestly say that FOR ME, it is SOO worth it! I know what my body can handle, and what it can not, and I just deal with it. I have had to leave amusement parks because they "accidentally" gave me the wrong chicken, I have brought "meal bars" along to weddings and parties in case I can not eat what is being served, and I have sat thru countless visits to my favorite restaurants watching others eat what I love. BUT I no longer feel sick, and I no longer have that appointment for a liver biopsy which makes it all worth it!
Okay....now that you know the WHY.....here is the How. How I survive cooking for my family without making two meals every night.
We are a picky group, and I do NOT enjoy cooking. I cook strictly to get a healthy meal on the table for my kids. The first thing I noticed when I was searching for recipes that were gluten and dairy free was that every single meal included at least 15 ingredients. ..... strange ingredients which I didn't own, want to own, or thought sounded good. I generally don't make ANY meal that includes more than 5 ingredients, so I just basically brushed off the recipes I had found and decided to do my own thing.
On a normal week we eat things like, tacos (totally ruined that a few times and didn't notice that some seasonings have dairy IN them already, so be careful) and I substitute cheese for avocado, Omlets, Fish with rice, Chicken, sandwich night, something on the grill.....and every week includes sushi for us. I cook basic foods that we can all eat!
Here is our new favorite recipe that I have made two times and they LOVE it!
Gluten Free & Dairy Free "Breaded" Chicken
Ingredients
Coconut Oil
Almond Meal
Gluten Free Pretzles
Egg
Chicken
(Only 5...that's my max)
*Preheat oven to 350
*Pound the chicken to make it tender
*I crush the pretzels in a plastic bag (my kids love doing this for me) and add them to the almond meal. I think it makes a nice texture and adds salt. (you could skip the pretzels if you wanted and just add salt or other spices)
*I use a whole egg and just was the chicken in it, then coat them with the "breading"
*I put them in the oven and cook until they are almost done then I brush on a little bit of melted coconut oil and broil them until the top is crispy. This makes it have the feeling of a piece of fried chicken.
*DONE!!!!!!
I served the chicken with corn (because the spinach had gone bad) and I cubed potatoes and just sautéed them in a little bit of coconut oil with salt and pepper! I am being totally honest when I say that if it isn't easy....I won't even give it a second look when it comes to cooking. I hope that you get the chance to try this!!!!
I love that I found another blog to follow that I really like! My email is a yahoo account so I have to comment under my husbands google acct, so don't think I'm a weird man creeper! My name is actually Janel, I have purchased from your etsy shop and love all the softies!
ReplyDeletethat is too funny! I am glad you are enjoying the blog!!!!! I am having fun getting back into it!
DeleteThat looks so yummy! My MIL has celiac so I will have to make this for her :)
ReplyDeleteI hope she likes it!!! Now I am all of a sudden nervous that nobody will like my recipe I made up! Haha!
Deletemy liver enzymes were definitely up for a while. Didn't think about it until I got a back-length rash and rosacea, the latter of which a dermatologist told me I would never rid with. "You'll live with this for the rest of you life, it's genetic," she said.
ReplyDeleteI did some googling and found changing my diet was a better option than face wash that smelled like hard-boiled eggs (it has sulfur in it). I've been dairy free and gluten free, with the occasional (aka frequent) slip up. I try to keep it to some feta, ricotta or mozzarella here and there, but avoid most other processed cheese and almost always avoid gluten. I've had four years of practice!
I no longer have a rashy back or rosacea. I also dropped weight and along with only eating meat when I go out, I am able to maintain my pant size. Except during winter, though, when I get couch butt from hibernating.
It blows my mind that you and I would have the same thing! Maybe we really are sisters....OR maybe our mom's were up to no good while we were pregnant! :) You are lucky you can cheat a little with cheese, I haven't even found anything that I miss enough to cheat. It just doesn't seem worth it. (although last week I WAS really wanting to go buy the cheesiest/creamiest spinach dip I could find and eat the entire thing myself)
DeleteAnd ps. my Dr told me it was genetic too and I would basically just have to live with it as well. Maybe you and I should become Dr's.
I've forced Tadeo to call me Dr. Liz from now on. I'm a registered internet nutritionist.
DeleteBefore I had my gall bladder out a couple years ago I would have terrible pains after eating anything with a lot of cheese. Although the doc told me I shouldn't have issues after getting my gall bladder out, I still find that my stomach hurts when I do have too much dairy (mostly cheese or milk). I haven't eliminated it entirely, but only have in moderation. I don't think I could ever go completely dairy free though without making separate meals for just myself. My husband loves cheese and continues to insist I put more on every time I make something (he's even taken food out of the oven before to put more on!). I think it would take an experience on par with yours before I got full support with that endeavor. Be thankful your family supports you. I admire your strong will to not eat at your favorite restaurants - I don't think I could be as strong willed (and of course would pay for it later)!
ReplyDeleteI had a hard time when I was just dairy free too! I just felt like I would plan on when I would sneak some in based on what I had to do in the next 24 hours. If I had no plans...I might sneak a bite of a reeces! I still do put cheese and dairy on their food from time to time (like with tacos and stuff) but for the most part I just try to have dinner items that don't call for it. I do have a "dairy free" cheese that I can use on my stuff if I just NEED it, but it really doesn't taste that great! Once we saw what it was all doing to my liver, I just really had no choice. My husband was a little annoyed with it all in the beginning, until he was scared by the Doctor's news also....now he is obsessed with making sure that I don't eat it! I am sure that if you even did it for a few weeks and reset your stomach, you might find that it helps you out! fingers crossed!
DeleteYup....spoke to me BIG time!! Thanks for this recipe...can't wait to try it soon!
ReplyDeleteYou should totally give it a shot and see if it works for you! Sometimes even just going without it for a few weeks can help reset you! My son had a bad stomach for a few months and we took him off of dairy 100% for three weeks and slowly added it back in and he has been doing much better! Whenever he starts to complain of a belly ache, we do a little "dairy detox" on him again. You can totally do it! Just shop the outside of the stores, and you are golden!
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