April Update

I'm still on the full GAPS diet.  Although, I did "cheat" a little over Easter.  Those darned gummy bears and jelly beans get me every time.  Fortunately (or not) they were "all natural" and organic. 

All my cravings for grains are gone.  Amazing. 

I've cut dairy out, though.  We were consuming raw dairy, but it seems to be too much for my children.  They had belly rashes and were having snoring issues.  We've been dairy-free, except for an occasional splash of left-over homemade raw yogurt in a smoothie or soup.  The rashes are going away and the snoring is dissipating. 

I'm still not eating pork either.  I've a 1/3 of a hog coming into my freezer this week and I can't eat it.  (insert sad face here)

The psoriasis is cleared up immensely.  There is a tiny patch on my right knee.  It's gone from my elbows and chest.  My hands and feet are still a little peely, but it's not too noticeable. 

One thing that is noticeable, to me anyway, are my fingernails.  The undersides of them are thick.  There is another layer of skin or nail underneath that is double the thickness of my fingernails.  It keeps my nails from breaking, which is nice, but it's just ugly. 

My journey is definitely not over, but I will probably post once a month now, unless I find a miracle cure of have some reaction to something. 

Be well, friends.

Day 35, Stage 6 (day 3)

Photo update...

It's been 35 days.  My psoriasis has improved amazingly.  Still, I don't know if it's been time that has had a hand in the healing or the GAPS diet.  The only way to really tell is to keep on keepin' on with the diet.  If it doesn't return, I'll be able to give GAPS credit.  If it does return, well, I'll cross that bridge if I ever reach it.



knee




Foot today



Foot four weeks into psoriasis - 4 1/2 weeks ago




left hand





I have nails...and I paint them (non toxic, eco-friendly polish, of course)



Chocolate Cake

I just had to share more pictures of the chocolate cake I made yesterday.  The kids ate it for breakfast and I was okay with that.  I whipped up the coconut cream, which was not like whipped cream, but worked nicely to add wetness to the cake.  I also took a bag of frozen mixed berries, added a little honey and heated them up to accompany the cake. 

Okay, I had a piece, too.  I'm really such a cheater.  But, I'm not having any adverse intestinal reactions, so I'm okay.  I would not recommend continuing with this sort of indulging if you are experiencing adverse effects.  Be well!

Day 34, Stage 6 (day 2)

I had a salad yesterday with mixed greens, strawberries, apple, cheddar and Gouda.  It was delicious.  I made a dressing with olive oil, a little bit of salt, a little bit of honey and a bit of ...vinegar.  I'm still alive today.  I had made the salad for my family and couldn't resist.  I ate a lot of it.  Not a problem that I can see.  Thank goodness. 

Okay, so I'm a super cheater.  I had chocolate today.  I made a chocolate cake.  It was so yummy. 

I found this recipe on Elana's Pantry...my new favorite site.  It's very similar to the blueberry muffins/cake that I made the other day.  I also made my own substitutions to cater to my pantry items.  It tasted like cake.  Not like coconut flour cake.  Like, real gluten-filled cake. 

Chocolate Cupcakes (with my substitutions).

1/2 cup coconut flour
1/4 cup cacao powder (the only thing I had was ghiradelli's dark chocolate powder)
1/4 cup cocoa butter nibs pulsed in food processor to teeny pieces
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
6 eggs
1/2 cup melted butter

3/4 cup honey
1/2 tsp all natural creme de menthe flavoring (you can't taste it in the cake, but it's enough to get rid of the coconut taste that angers my oldest son)

1. In a medium bowl, combine dry ingredients
2. In a large bowl, blend together wet ingredients
3. Blend dry ingredients into wet thoroughly
4. Line a glass pie plate with parchment and pour mix into it.
5. Bake at 350° for 35-40 minutes
6. Cool 
7. Serve

Makes one pie plate of cake.

Next time I make this...or tomorrow when I eat it...I may make a frosting with either raw cream or coconut cream.  I have a box of coconut cream I have wanted to try.

The lighting was terrible, so the shot is too.  But look!  It's cakey and lovely. 

Day 32, Stage 5-ish...again.

I made a super delicious cake today with coconut flour.  I got a recipe for a blueberry cupcake, but I didn't have paper muffin cups, so I just lined a pie plate with parchment, lessened the honey content and called it breakfast. 

As you can see, there wasn't much left over.  Actually, I had to rip the pie plate from my son's hands in order to take the picture.  

Here's the recipe with my own twists -

1/2 cup coconut flour

1/4 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp baking soda

one egg

2 egg whites (I would have used 3 eggs, but I didn't have any...)

1/3 cup honey

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup melted butter

1 cup frozen blueberries

Mix all dry ingredients together.  Mix all wet ingredients together, sans blueberries.  Mix wet with dry until smooth.  Fold in blueberries.  Pour in parchment lined glass pie plate.  Bake at 350 degrees F for 55 minutes.  It still seemed a bit wet in the middle.  Perhaps it was because of my substitutions.  It was still yummy.  Yes, I ate some.  I hadn't had blueberries yet (and they weren't organic...gasp!), but I seemed to fare well with them today. 

Day 31, Stage 5

Nothing crazy was eaten today.  No gas or stomach pains either. 

Hamburgers w/avocado and tomato for breakfast.  Lunch was leftover hamburger and some asparagus soup.  Dinner was chicken sausage w/onions and peppers.  Late night snack - carrot juice.

I recently went to see an applied kinesiologist.  He told me that the Cod Liver oil wasn't what my body wanted or needed...so I'm now taking a DHA.  My body apparently LOVES the Bio Kult probiotics.  I was also put on a Riboflavin (vitamin b), which makes my urine fluorescent yellow and a molybdenum.  I will say that I will finish out the bottles, but not buy more.  I researched molybdenum online and it isn't something that people are usually short on.  In very rare cases there is a deficiency.  I've been super sleepy, and coincidentally, over usage of molybdenum causes sleepiness. 

I also stopped eating pork.  My fingers started to peel again.  They had been peel-free for two weeks.  Then, I started eating sausage like it was going out of style.  I love pork and was so thrilled that my butcher could make a sugar-free pork sausage.  I did some more online research and found that pork and psoriasis can go hand-in-hand.  I stopped eating it 6 days ago and the peeling is not getting worse.  It's fading away. 

Getting to know my triggers is key.  I get frustrated when things go awry, but I'm thankful that I'm so in tune with what is going on that I'm able to eventually see what is adversely affecting my body.  Instead of masking the symptoms...taking a pill for the ill...I'm getting to the root of the problem.  I am sad that bacon may not be a part of my life anymore... Gosh...I love bacon.

Day 30, Stage 5.5...ish

After throwing so much carrot pulp into the chicken coop and compost, I decided to find a recipe using it.  I found one for Basil crackers. 

Basil crackers

I also made a batch of GAPS legal macaroons.  I ate quite a few of those. 

I also made Hempseed Apricot Chews from Whole Foods Market. 

I ate one of those. 

My belly did not like something I ate today. 

Today, I'll go back to soups for a day or two to give my insides a rest.  　
by Sophie Quinn

carrot or vegetable pulp from juicing (about 5 cups)
1 clove crushed garlic
1/2 cup basil, chopped or dried handful cylantro, chopped
2 ripe tomatos, chopped
1 cup (or more) sprouted and crushed nuts (almonds, sesame, sunflower...etc.) - I used raw pepitas
sea salt, dulse or braggs to taste

Use a spatula to spread over teflex sheet in dehydrator or pan in oven and dehydrate for about 8 hrs or until completely dry. Wonderful with guacamole or other dips! Also a great way to make convience food out of compost.
I ate a handful of them.  They were dry, but my husband made mini sandwiches with them.  My kids put cream cheese in between them.