Nuts on a Gluten-Free Holiday

Nuts on a Gluten-Free Holiday
Have you ever made a decision to quit, stop, or change how you eat? Then you found yourself going nuts? Let’s crack an egg and enjoy a moment.

Rich and I decided to go “gluten-free” in September. It took emptying the pantry of a myriad of staples such as wheat flour, crackers, anything with modified food starch, etc. As long as we were going in a new direction, Rich went out and purchased new cookbooks, so we wouldn’t get too lost in our endeavor. Online he ordered “The Wheat-free Cook” by Jacqueline Mallorca, “The Paleo Diet Cookbook” by Loren Cordain, and my favorite “Paleo Comfort Foods” by Julie and Charles Mayfield. Needless to tell you we had an assortment of wonderful guides.
You may suspect that I enjoy cooking, and you’re right. (Ask any student of our courses how many wonderful, healthy refreshments are provided at our center.) I even have a schedule that I’ve used for over 30 years on cooking holiday dinner with pages indicated of different cookbooks. Well, this year, I didn’t use them. I used new cookbooks. Listen for it… listen… listen.. hear the screams? Yes, it was time to go nuts. Even more than what you can imagine.
Since we had been cooking gluten-free we learned all about nut flours. Peanut flour, almond, coconut, and then there were different oils such as peanut oil, coconut, walnut… sort of drives you “nuts” doesn’t it? What we discovered is that we could bake and enjoy a lot of yummy and healthy stuff provided we liked nuts… which we do enjoy.
Yet, doing something different than what you’re used to can be a strange experience. I found myself struggling with not making the typical pie crust, and felt like I was “off” because I hadn’t made yeast rolls. It was strange. I felt confused, worried, and walked in circles a bit. Not doing what I always did, how I had established a habit, where I was ingrained with a pattern was driving me nuts. After sitting down for a tea break I realized I’d have to suck it up and stick with the plan, because we went “gluten-free” for good reasons.
Why did we choose to do this? Neither one of use had celiac disease, which many know as a great pain to the digestive organs and being able to absorb vitamins or tolerate any form of wheat. What we did was read “Wheat Belly” by Dr. William Davis, a heart surgeon that was encouraging his patients to get off wheat for a healthier heart. What he discovered in his research is that many other parts of the body are affected. When we personally went gluten-free, our joints felt better, a rash I’d had for months went away, we both felt about over ten (10) pounds melt off, and our thinking was clearer. It took about a week or so, but we didn’t miss the regular bread as much as we thought. We felt better and that was what we needed. We also discovered that going to restaurants took paying attention. I was delighted to find that many servers carried a list of gluten-free items on their menu.
Getting back to the holiday cooking, I was programmed to cook one way and was feeling the bit of confusion that comes for a bit when you change the way you think. What did I do? I actually walked around a bit and remembered all the higher reasons why I was doing was I was doing. Memories of Gramma’s cookies, mom’s apple pie, and our family Italian gatherings with pasta and Italian bread rushed into my mind and I stopped there and appreciated such delicious moments. Then I stepped back into 2011 and felt myself in this body and realized how I was changing for the better. My mind was clear, my energy was higher, my skin felt at ease… too many benefits here to go back to the old ways. Sitting down with the beautiful photos in Paleo Comfort Foods, and reading thru the new recipes I saw myself putting these ingredients together and enjoying them. Just like that, I took a breathe and started cooking, baking, and set a feast that was 100{8b3a2f999ba59642dfe826ddd554f6c9ff0174d7b182d4f1913e29042ced5c7c} gluten-free.
“Delicious!” said our neighbor and her significant other who was hesitant on coming for a Thanksgiving feast at a “wheat-free” event. Everyone went back for seconds… only we felt more comfortable. There is a lot more to this concept and I hope you will all try it out. It’s a new way to experience your body. I won’t even mention that people can benefit whether they do it for diabetes, weight, heart, skin, mood, or health of other areas. The food will taste great, you’ll feel good. When you try this out, let me know how you experience your body.

Happy Healthy Holidays!