Welcome and thank you for visiting my website. Don’t panic! I can help. The first thing that goes through everyone’s mind after being diagnosed with an immune reaction to eating gluten is, what am I going to eat now? The truth in fact is just about anything you want.
This revelation didn’t hit me right away. Like most people, my diet was in large part dependent on the two unnatural food groups – ultra processed and fast foods. These two unnatural food groups are abundant in wheat, all its hidden sources and related grains. Whereas, naturally gluten-free foods include everything that nature has to offer (meats, fish, eggs, poultry, fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts and grains).
Some grains are the exception. Gluten is a protein found in these exceptions; wheat, rye and barley. If consumed by a gluten sensitive person through the course of his or her life, chronic health problems will develop. Presently, the only effective treatment for an immune reaction to gluten is a life-long gluten-free diet.
When it became evident that wheat, all its hidden sources and related grains had to be eliminated from my diet. I saw this as just a necessary life-style change. What disturbed me (that is, up until 2011) was an indifference the food industry showed toward a population with an immune reaction to eating gluten. Just about any type of processed food could not be consumed.
A visit to your neighborhood health food store is at best frustrating. Yes, most health food stores provide a decent selection of gluten free products. But, if you are a person of moderate income, the cost of these foods will leave you with sticker shock.
When the shock eventually wore off, I realized all this meant was that my meals had to be made from scratch (moment of revelation). So, if a person with an immune reaction to gluten, took the time to prepare and cook his or her meals with naturally gluten-free food – one could still have a diverse diet.
As the weeks went by I realized that my revelation needed a reality check. Making meals from scratch is easier said than done. Cooking can be time consuming, annoying and stressful – especially if you have children. That said, take heart for it will become easier as you go along.
My reality check was the driving force behind my desire to create a meal plan. But a collection of recipes by themselves did not seem to be enough. There was something missing.
That something was a basic knowledge of food your imagination could reference if you wanted to try something new. You will become your own chef, limited only by your imagination. This experience brought to mind a maxim I have long believed in and in part helped inspire me to create this website.
If you give a man a fish, you feed him for a day. If you teach a man to fish, you feed him for a lifetime.
Having a basic knowledge of proteins, fats and carbohydrates is critical to our complete recovery. We can’t just remove gluten from our diet and expect all to be well. The damage inflicted by your immune system (triggered by gluten) is not to be taken lightly. Your body is in need of repair.
It’s going to need a diet free of ultra processed and fast food. A diet packed with macro and micro nutrients. This will help it to undo the ills that a gluten filled diet had years to place in motion. Our bodies are amazingly resilient. When given enough time and care, the human body has demonstrated time and time again, that it can heal itself.
With the above in mind, creating a collection of recipes that embodied those viewpoints was the next logical step. To begin with, I kept a few things in mind before making each meal. The food had to be inexpensive and easily accessible, that’s a given. Preparation and cooking time for breakfast/lunch 15-45 minutes. Dinner/dessert 60-90 minutes.