EGGS FOR BREAKFAST

There are so many unnecessary and harmful ingredients put in foods today that's it's no wonder they make us ill.  For a while I didn't eat eggs.  They seemed to make me sick at times.  Then I switched to organic, cage-free eggs and had no problem at all.  If you have local farms where you and the stores can get fresh, organic produce and meat products, then lucky you!  Switching out some of your chemically altered foods to organic is the way to go.  Here is a simple 3-egg omelet that is a good start to anyone's day - enjoy!

Southwestern
Veggie Omelet
1 serving

Ingredients:
3 organic, cage-free eggs
1 tsp. butter
1/2 Roma tomato, thinly sliced
1/3 avocado, chopped
1 Tb. shredded cheddar cheese
Salt and pepper

Directions:

Heat small pot on medium-low heat.  Add butter and coat the bottom.  Add beaten eggs and cook on low for one minute.  Sprinkle in the cheese and place the sliced tomatoes in the egg mixture.  Add a dash or two of salt and pepper.  Cook until almost firm throughout.  Quickly toss the omelet with a spatula to finish cooking, about 1 minute.  Sprinkle some more salt and pepper on this side.  Remove to a plate and add avocado to the top.  Optional:  add a little salsa on top.

Summer Salad

Going gluten-free is a journey of rediscovering food and appreciating what you put in your mouth.  Two of my favorite foods are shrimp and avocado.  Here I included them in a tasty salad that's great during those hot summer days.  Serve cold or room temperature.

Zesty Island Shrimp Salad
servings:  2

Ingredients:
2 c. cooked shrimp, shelled
1 avocado, diced
1 tomato, seeded and diced
1/4 c. red onion, chopped fine
1/2 cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped
2-3 Tb. olive oil
Juice of half a lemon
1/8 tsp. each salt, pepper and ground coriander seed

Directions:  Combine all in a bowl.  Toss gently to mix.  Serve!

I Love Bananas

BANANA MUFFINS
(makes 12 muffins)

Ingredients:

1/4 c. butter, softened
1 c. organic turbinado sugar
2 eggs
2 large bananas, mashed
1 tsp. GF vanilla extract
2 c. Bob's Red Mill GF All Purpose Baking Flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt

Directions:  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Place paper liners in cupcake/muffin tin.  Combine butter, sugar, eggs, bananas and vanilla in large bowl and mix thoroughly.  Blend flour, baking powder and salt and add to banana mixture. Mix until combined. Evenly distribute batter in twelve muffin cups.  Bake in oven for 20-22 min.  Add a cream cheese icing or spread with soft butter.  Enjoy!

Pizza - YUM!

YES, YOU CAN HAVE PIZZA! (you just have to know where to find it).  For me, one of the hardest foods to give up was pizza.  There wasn't a tasty gluten-free pizza in existence way back when I discovered my intolerance.  Luckily, there were people out there who listened to our demands and have created excellent alternatives.  There are now several different brands of gluten-free frozen pizzas in some grocery stores as well as online.  My favorites are the ones from Gluten Free & Fabulous.  I can even find them in my local Smith's store.  They have only two of the five choices right now, and they are:  Pepperoni and Pesto Margherita.  All other versions you can buy from their website.  Also available are gluten-free pizza dough mixes where you can make pizza at home.  I have yet to try it, but I will update you when I do!  In Las Vegas, I know of only two restaurants where you can order a gluten-free pizza.  One is Sammy's Woodfire Pizza and the other is Mark Rich's New York Pizza & Pasta.  Sammy's has more gourmet style pizzas while Mark Rich's has traditional kinds.  Lucky for me, they are both located less then three miles from my house - Yipee!  Check back for more taste-tested gluten-free fare....

Fruits and Vegetables

FRUITS AND VEGGIES ARE OUR FRIENDS!  Eating food in its natural state is more beneficial.  I like to roast whatever vegetables I happen to have left in my fridge at least once a week.  Here, I had baby carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini and pea pods.  See instructons below.  Next recipe to come is Banana Muffins!

Roasted Veggies

Directions:  Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Cover a cookie sheet with foil - this makes for easy clean-up.  Spread out the veggies of your choice on the sheet.  Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with a little sea salt, pepper and Italian seasoning.  You can use fresh herbs like sage, rosemary and thyme in place of the dried herbs if you like.  Toss the veggies gently and spread out evenly.  Roast in oven for 15 minutes. Done!

Be Sure To Take Your Vitamins!

One important addition to any gluten intolerant persons diet is a multivitamin.  Before figuring out that you had celiac disease, your body was unable to absorb the necessary nutrients from foods because of the damage the gluten protein caused in your intestines. As with anything you're ingesting, you need to read the label!  Some multivitamins may contain gluten!  Some specifically say they are free of gluten while others just list the ingredients.  If you're not sure, ask a representative at a health/vitamin store.  Most grocery store employees will unlikely know what you're talking about, let alone that there's something called celiac disease or gluten intolerance.  I've tried a GNC brand multivitamin for women but recently found a cheaper one at my local grocery store that specifically states it is free of gluten, among other things you don't want to be ingesting.  It's by Rainbow Light Nutritional Systems.  Check back later for more yummy recipes!

Some years after going gluten-free I noticed I was sensitive to other things as well.  I try to limit sugar and caffeine now.  In regards to refined sugar, it doesn't take long for it to hit my system and cause problems like migraines and general fatigue.  Here is a no-sugar-added smoothie I like to make.

PB & Banana Smoothie

Ingredients:

1 frozen ripe banana, pre-chopped
1/3 c. plain yogurt
1 c. unsweetened almond milk
2 Tb. natural peanut butter
2 tsp. flax seeds
one or two dashes of cinnamon

Directions:  Combine all in blender and mix until smooth.  Add more almond milk for desired consistency.  Healthy and yummy!

One Day At A Time

Welcome to my gluten-free blog!  I've wanted to start one for a while but never got around to it until now.  Since I was a little kid, I've always had stomach issues and thought that was just the way I was.  I had to remind myself to eat slower and take small bites.  That's how I originally got my nickname, "Birdie," - because I ate like a bird.  Somehow, subconsciously, I knew I shouldn't be eating bread, because I would intentionally remove the bun from hamburgers and hotdogs and just eat the meat.  I led a pretty full and active life, despite all my discomfort.  When I reached my 20's though, things began to get worse.  The intestinal cramping and discomfort increased, I was extrememly fatigued.  I'm not sure how I made it through school being so tired all the time.  My hair was thinning and coming out,  my periods were getting worse - slight anemia, flu-like symptoms, and irregular.  At one point I lost a lot of weight and got down to 103 lbs.  I Finally went to the doctor when I felt so ill for a couple months.  As with many people in my situation I had the usual diagnosis of either irritable bowel syndrome or an intestinal virus.  I didn't believe it and was extremely disappointed.  At this point I stop eating dairy products, which did help a little.  In the meantime, I found some articles in magazines that described symptoms that were exactly what I had - celiac disease.  Eureka!  So I had to self-diagnose myself and start a strict gluten-free diet.  Within a few weeks I began to feel better, I was amazed!  Of course, it took me a good three years to be completely gluten-free as I became diligent with label reading, learned which fast food I could and couldn't have, and what choices I had at restaurants - not much!  I am glad to say that there are more tasty gluten-free products out today then there were ten years ago, and those newly diagnosed may not be as tempted to cheat.  Stop by in the future to see my own recipes and suggestions as this is just the beginning.