Week 1 Wrap Up

I've been on GAPS now for 1 week...during the holiday season.  Yikes.  I have been tempted with candy canes, chocolate truffles, hot cocoa, pies, sugar plums...  all my weaknesses.  And casseroles.  And rice dishes.
I keep looking to the future and a healthy me and politely decline, or not lick my fingers as I'm creating these dishes for my family.
I have been consuming lots of bone broth.  Chicken and beef.  I am not a fan of fish, so there will be no fish broth.  I've been taking vitamin D supplements, fermented cod liver/butter oil capsules and a good probiotic.  I've been drinking ginger tea and chamomile tea, with a little local raw honey.  I've been making soups with broth, carrots, onions, cauliflower, broccoli, parsnips and turnips.  I've been adding Bubbies Pickle juice to my soups. I do have kimchi, but I feel that might be too spicy for now.  I've started stage 2 and adding garlic and an egg yolk.  This began yesterday.  So far, so good.  I do have to say that I am constipated.  Not painfully, but I just don't have bowel movements the way I used to.  You're welcome for sharing.
I anticipate being on soups for another week, maybe two.  I want to see improvement in my skin before I move on.  But I don't know if it'll take time or should happen soon.  I have noticed that my tongue is less white.  Good sign.

My favorite soup so far:
1 lb grass fed ground beef
1 head cauliflower
2 onions
beef bone broth to cover
bring to a boil.
simmer 30 minutes.
Add 1 crushed clove of garlic, 3 TBS Bubbies Pickle juice, one egg yolk.

It kind of tastes like a cheeseburger.

Almost 2 years later... Reboot

I haven't been posting because all has been quiet.  The psoriasis is pretty much at bay.  I still get a dry patch on my ankle, but nothing red and painful and scaly.  The skin on my hands is a little dry as well.  I'll have small bouts of fingertip peeling if I eat too much gluten.  It's almost nonexistent in the summer.  However, my feet got really dry and peely during the summer.  I can't make sense of that.

Now...

My cholesterol level is 317.  My vitamin D is 16.  I still have psoriasis.  I still have carpal tunnel.  I am sensitive to caffeine and sugar (I'm talking raging bitch kind of sensitive - the kind that makes me say, "Why are the kids acting so crazy?! And it's really just me being overly sensitive to their normal behavior).  My asthma came back where I needed to use an inhaler every day for the month of September/October.  I hadn't used it like that ever.  I'm under a ton of stress from work and personal stuff.  My body is out. of. whack.

I feel like I need to start the intro again...  While I did a pretty great job last time.  I'd like to start over again and lengthen each stage.  There was one month where I ate a few donuts every day.  Ouch.

Today was Day 1...again.

I drank a TON of broth.  Took some fermented cod liver oil, probiotics and vitamin D.  I had chicken, onion and zucchini soup for lunch and dinner.  Perpetual broth in the crock now.  Chamomile tea and a mug of broth waiting on the counter for me...

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.