Six Food Intolerance Living

Growing up with a Thai mother and an Australian step-father made meals at our house interesting. There was a large variety of different foods and actually. For dinner, one night we'd have stir fry and the next we'd have roast lamb and veggies. It was great. There was usually something different and new to look forward to. For breakfast, there was also a big difference.

Here is what one version of a traditional Thai breakfast looks like:


This is just a plain egg with white rice ... that was topped with just a couple splashes of fish sauce (start with 2 or 3, taste, and work your way up - this stuff is potent!). I know that this might sound strong and salty and unappealing to some of you - but it's not! I promise. Don't believe me? Ginger Lemon Girl tried it and liked it!! ;) It's so simple, so naturally GDSYWP-free, and so delicious. Something about the rich egg yolk with the salty fish sauce is just heavenly and comforting. There are two tricks - 1) The egg must be over easy - you want to try to get a really crispy egg white and yet keep a runny egg yolk and 2) Your fish sauce must be fresh. If it's a translucent light brown color (sort of like tea) with a light fishy odor, then you're good. If it's dark brown or even black and very strong smelling - toss it now!!! It's old and yucky.


And here is one version of an Australian Breakfast:


Just a bit more food than the Thai breakfast, huh? :) This is just fried eggs over toasted bread with bacon, baked beans and grilled (well, mine were fried) tomatoes on the side. With one change, this is easily gluten free, and with a few other tweaks, it's pork free! To make this gluten free, just use gluten free bread and to make pork free, use turkey or beef bacon and use vegetarian baked beans (these are my favorite). What I love about this is the mixture of the rich yolk with the sweet baked beans and the crunch of the toast and then a few salty meaty bites of bacon. I actually usually forgo the tomatoes, but thought I'd include it here to be true-to-the-food.


I know that for some of you, these dishes might be stepping out of your comfort zone, but trust me, it's worth it! They're pretty quick, tasty, and with just a few minor tweaks, GDSYWP-free - what more could you ask for? :)

I'm sorry I've been a little MIA lately! Things have just been nuts around here. Two weeks ago, a big project at work dropped into my lap and I'm only just now getting a handle on things, I had Salmonella poisoning all last week, Hubby had a business trip, been doing a bit of spring clearing-out and ya know, just general life getting in the way of things!

But - I've come up with a couple of good post ideas and even a few recipes to share, so stay tuned! :)

I have been thinking a lot lately about confidence.

Confidence is something I always had growing up - confidence in my abilities, confidence in myself and confidence in my actions. But, somewhere along the way, I seemed to have lost it.

I think gaining weight had a lot to do with it - not because I was fat or unattractive, but because I wasn't myself. Everyone could see it and often pointed out - they said that I was meeker, milder and more quiet. I had retreated in, not feeling understood. I hated being told that I looked "different" or being asked if I was pregnant or that "I would never have recognized you." I was usually fine with the weight that I had put on, but to be told that I didn't look like me was not okay. All of a sudden, I began to not feel like me either. I wallowed in that for a few years, fluctuating in weight, not feeling like myself, trying to rediscover myself only to realize that I wasn't that same person anymore - so then trying to figure out who the new person I has become was - then being hit with the fact that my body wasn't really my body but instead something food had taken over - I had no idea what my body was really like since it was always fighting something. It was just one blow after another. I feared I'd never lose the weight, that I wouldn't ever be myself again and I had no confidence in myself. All that doubt lead to more inaction - more wallowing in my own self pity and laziness - which, not surprisingly, didn't help!

Recently, however, I have begun to have more confidence in myself. I am learning that I am strong, determined and smart. I have confidence in the new lifestyle that I have begun, I am confident in the choices I make and I am beginning to have more confidence in my body. After reading this moving story, I decided that it was time to stop putting off doing/buying things until I have my "better" body. I bought a couple new, beautiful, pieces to add to my wardrobe - splurged a bit on a few pieces of jewelry and decided not to wait anymore for a skinnier body to get some feel-good clothes. And, they are in my newest style - vintagey, feminine pieces. It's not about waiting and longing for the body that I had and want again, but instead about celebrating the body that I have now - a curvy, womanly, comfy body. After all, Real Women Have Curves.

Now, all this is not to say that I'm giving up hope on a skinner body - but I'm not focusing or obsessing over it, either. My main goal is to be healthy, and if getting skinny comes as a result of that - then so be it - if not, then I will survive! I am taking actions to be a healthier person - I'm moving around/exercising more, I'm trying to eat more fruits and vegetables while eating less sweets and I'm just trying to take care of me. I know these actions will only further help my confidence and before you know it, it will no longer be a conscious effort, but instead, a result of my routine actions!

So, what have you been putting off? What do YOU want to do? Well, go out and get busy doing it! :)

This quote really struck me. It is so true in so many ways and for some many reasons.

When I first started this diet, I made a few mistakes, but rather than throwing in the towel, I just said, okay, it was an infraction, but I will try again tomorrow. It worked and I'm now 100% GDSYWP-free and it feels good.

Now, I'm trying to summon the courage to be more active. I want to exercise regularly for both a bit of weight loss and for over-all health. I've never been one much for exercise so it will take a bit of diligence on my part, and some support from my friends and my Hubby! Even if I miss a day or don't do as much as I had planned/hoped, I will not give up but instead remember to try again tomorrow!

A while ago on my Vita-Mix Users Yahoo Group, a lady named Cathrine posted a success story with a recipe she called "Mint Julep with a Twist." It looked good, so I tried it, but of course, I had to tweak it a bit! Here is what I came up with:

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Mint Julep
Inspired by Cathrine from the Vita-Mix Yahoo Group

1 long English cucumber, chopped into smaller chunks
1 1/2" slab of fresh pineapple, chopped into smaller chunks
1 large handful of fresh mint leaves
1 splash of lime juice (I used bottled, but you of course you could use fresh)
1 cup water
2 droppers full of stevia
1 cup of ice

Mix it all together starting on low & slowly increase to high. Once it is all pureed, turn the Vita-Mix down to low and add ice until chopped.
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This made A LOT, nearly a whole Vita-Mix full, so be warned. Hubby had a few sips, but wasn't thrilled with it, so I drank it myself over 2 days. This was pretty refreshing, not quite as "summer" tasting as I had imagined, but still quite good!

Enjoy!

I know you all have heard me talk about my wonderful, dear friend Carrie, right? Well, did you know that we've never met in real life? Yup. Not once. And we've never had a real conversation over the phone. Seriously. We met through her Gluten Free Recipes Yahoo Group when she asked me to help her moderate and it just all took off from there! We did A LOT of the "What! You, too? Thought I was the only one" through emails and chats - with food, with our housekeeping skills (or lack thereof! :) ) and with our general lives. In only a few short months, she has become an integral part of my life. She is a dear friend and a wonderful person. If you haven't been to her blog, Ginger Lemon Girl, be sure to visit today! :)

Today, one my all-time favorite recipes, and one of the ones that "sold" me on the Vita-Mix! Vita-Mix Tortilla Soup from the Vita-Mix website (and cookbook!). But, as usual, I tweaked things a bit. Here is what I do:

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Tortilla Soup
Inspired from Vita-Mix: http://vitamix.ahoy.com/recipe/recipe.cgi/0/274/

Yield: 5 cups
Speed: Variable to High to Variable
Time: 5 to 6 minutes

Ingredients:
3 cups water
2 bouillon cubes
1 Roma tomato
1 carrot
1 rib celery
1 thin slice of onion
1 garlic clove, peeled
1 thin slice of yellow squash
1 thin slice of red bell pepper
1 thin slice of cabbage
1 mushroom
1 packet of Sazon Goya Low Sodium Seasoning, Natural & Complete
dash adobo powder without pepper
dash chili powder
dash cumin
handful of black beans (reserved)
handful of corn kernels (reserved)

Directions:
Place all ingredients to cumin (leaving out black beans and corn) in Vita-Mix container in order listed. Secure 2-part lid. Select VARIABLE, speed #1. Turn on machine and quickly increase speed to #10; then to HIGH. Run for 5 to 6 minutes until steam escapes through lid opening.

Reduce speed to VARIABLE, speed #2. Remove lid plug. Add in the black beans and corn kernels just a few seconds - long enough to chop them up a bit.

Serve immediately.
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Can't you just see that steam rising from it? All from a blender! Pretty cool (er, uh, hot), huh?