Guilt-free Gluten-free

I'm back! My daughter is four months old and we are settled in the new house, so things have calmed down enough for me to update again (sort of). This recipe is one I got from The Londoner and modified a bit. Her blog is my favorite - even if you include mine.

Now I know that rice is our friend. It's good for my IBS and my Celiac. But sometimes I want to down a huge bowl of food without worrying about eating enough carbs to put the baby weight right back on my belly. Enter "mock fried rice."

The trick here is to substitute finely grated cauliflower with the water pressed out of it for the rice. So essentially, you're just eating a big bowl of veggies (and meat or egg if you want). So you can pig out and still put a check in the healthy column. Use whatever fixins you want, but here's what I did. As always, measurements are a guess:

1 head cauliflower finely grated and pressed
2 green onions, chopped
7 mushrooms, sliced
1 can water chestnuts, chopped
1 can bean sprouts
1 small head of napa cabbage, finely chopped
3-4 slices of ham, chopped (or pre-chopped ham)
2 eggs, or 1/2 cup egg whites

Sauce:
1/4 c soy sauce
1Tbsp rice vinegar
2Tbsp chicken, beef or veggie broth
2tsp cornstarch
Ginger and garlic powder to taste

Heat cauliflower in oiled pan for about five minutes, then add veggies and ham and let steam. Make a small well in the middle, and pour in egg to cook. Chop egg and stir into cauliflower mixture. Combine all sauce ingredients in a small bowl or measuring cup (make sure to really mix in the cornstarch!) and pour into pan. Let it simmer for a few minutes, and enjoy!

"It's been a long time, we shouldn't'a left you without a dope beat to step to..."

Yeah, I know the title is a little ridiculous, but that's the second thing that came to mind when I thought "It's been a long time." The first was "It's been such a long time, I think I should be going..." Not super appropriate for a comeback.

I'm sorry that it has been such a long time. I know all five of you were on pins and needles. The truth is, the first trimester absolutely KICKED. MY. BUTT. I slept for 14 hour stretches, I threw up everything, and I lost 15 pounds between that and my lack of appetite. But the second trimester, thank God, has been much better. I have my energy back, I can eat (some days like a trucker, although my only cravings are cucumbers and Italian food), and I've gained back 6 pounds.

I still, I might add, at -9 lbs from where I started, feel like a whale. So when my husband told me tonight that I'm beautiful and he wanted to take me out to dinner to show me off (the man has a wonderful self-preservation instinct), how could I resist? I started looking at restaurants online, wanting to branch out a bit. I checked Applebees first. Every forum review by a person with Celiac detailed how they got horribly sick. So I tried Outback.

Holy mother of food. They have a HUGE gluten free menu. It's about 1/2 of the actual menu, and they even have notes about things like asking for your salad to be mixed in a separate bowl. It was beautiful. I nearly cried (a super common occurrence at this stage).

Our waitress, first of all, was amazing. Her name was Allison, and as soon as I said I had Celiac, her immediate response was "Would you like a gluten free menu?" Amazing - they knew what Celiac was. So then we ordered. I had the filet and lobster tail (yes, I know I'm pregnant - lobster is low mercury and is safe to eat a couple times a month), along with green beans (no seasoning, as the menu suggested), and garlic mashed potatoes. Everything was amazing. I then had to get the Chocolate Thunder from Down Under, which has apparently always been GF - it's a flourless brownie. 

All in all, it was so amazing that I even called over the manager to tell her how great my experience was, and how great Allison was (she even wrote "congratulations" on our bill because I mentioned the baby when justifying wolfing down my entire dinner in about 2 minutes). 

I think Outback is now my premier dining destination. They have way more variety than any other place I've been, the food was amazing, and the service even more so. I'm going to go slip into a food coma, while you all check out their GF menu here: 

Gluten Free Bun

Sorry if I got anyone's hopes up - I haven not, in fact, found a gluten free bread or bun that I'm super excited about (other than the baguettes). The GF bun I'm referring to is the one in the oven - I'm pregnant.

I tell you this because it may change the tone of the blog a bit. I'm not sure what cravings I'll be having (so far it's been Chinese food, sandwiches, and oranges, but who knows for the future), or what health risks may arise. So I'll probably be focusing on that a bit.

First, I do want to address something that freaked me out when I first read about it. Celiac can cause miscarriage. Damage to the intestines keeps you from getting proper nutrition, which keeps the baby from getting proper nutrition. I was able to confirm, however, that once a woman with Celiac is on a GF diet, her odds of miscarriage return to the norm.

I did, however, think that I would be better prepared for pregnancy because of the Celiac. My stomach is already a bit swollen, I already throw up at random, and I'm already tired.

Today's Stephane cannot stop laughing at the Stephane who thought that. Morning sickness (or, as I like to call it "morning until whenever it decides to stop sickness") is like Nausea part 2  - son of Nausea. On top of that, the pregnancy seems to be aggravating my IBS. And as for the tired, well, I now have a yoga mat in my office that I nap on during my lunch break. I can also sleep a 14 hour stretch.

Point is, this is a very new adventure so far. I'm lucky to have a lot of support from other moms and moms-to-be (including my sister - finally met my new nephew this week!), and of my husband who is more than willing to run out for ginger ale, crackers, or completely insane food requests.

I'll keep you updated, and will hopefully find some more helpful tips for balancing pregnancy and Celiac.

"Marie - the baguettes - hurry up!"

I find myself needing to apologize for two things:

1) I don't update nearly often enough, and

2) I never think to take pictures of my food that I post about.

Both stem from the same thing - the fact that I quite frequently forget I have a blog. Between a full time job, and other randomness, there's a lot I don't get to. In fact, due to a nasty cold, I haven't even met my now week-old nephew yet. Sorry, Easton! I promise, Aunt Fifi loves you.

But I promise that you'll forgive me for both if you try either of the suggestions I have today. The first was a random impulse purchase over a month ago. I present to you Udi's gluten free baguettes:

I picked them up one day due mostly to the fact that I have yet to find a GF bread I truly love. Udi's white is pretty good, but I'm not thrilled with it. Plus, no trip to a market is complete unless you have at least one baguette sticking out of your grocery bag. I then threw them in the freezer when I got home and promptly forgot about them.

Cut to Tuesday. I got home from work, and I was starving. And I knew exactly what I wanted - a giant sub with turkey, roast beef, red peppers, lettuce, and sesame ginger dressing (which I'll get to in a minute). But I didn't feel like going shopping. And that's when I remembered that past Stephane is way more thoughtful than the Stephane of this week, and she bought me baguettes. I heated them in the oven, sliced them in half, and loaded them up with my fixins. They were perfect. Crispy outside, soft on the inside. I wanted about 8 more. In all fairness, that may have to do with my other new favorite thing - Heinen's sesame ginger dressing.

We had a couple of Mike's co-workers and their significant others (and one adorable 1 year old son) over for dinner a few weeks ago. I made chicken parm, and I decided a veggie tray would be the easiest for a starter. I bought peppers, olives, cucumbers, and carrots. The Heinen's dressings were on sale, so I grabbed three - Italian, sesame ginger, and Caesar - I wanted a range, having no idea what my guests like. I was super excited to find the sesame ginger, given that I had had to throw out the one I had in the fridge when I found out I had Celiac (due to cheap soy sauce with gobs of wheat in it).

I got a little peckish waiting for everyone to show up, so I grabbed a cucumber and pepper with some of the sesame ginger dressing. I am only slightly exaggerating when I tell you I could have just gulped down the whole bottle straight. That may be the best dressing I've ever had in my life. For those of you who aren't Heinen's fans, Giant Eagle makes one with the exact same ingredients. I have put one or the other on almost everything I've eaten all month. I put it in rice, on meat, on veggies - anything.

So go buy some baguettes and sesame ginger dressing, make a sandwich, and forgive me for being the worst blogger ever. Enjoy!


Burgers and Beer

First of all, I apologize to my 5 readers for not updating in awhile. Between work and other things, it's been a little crazy. But I definitely had to post about some great customer service I experienced last week.

Last Friday night, we had a surprise 30th birthday party for our friend, Ben, at Willoughby Brewing Company. I was excited to go out with friends for the first time in a long time, but I was also really nervous. With my IBS I can't really eat salads, so I needed to know if there were other GF options. I also needed to make sure if there were, that the restaurant staff would know to cook them separately, etc. So I sent an e-mail to the manager with my concerns, and this is what I got back:

"Stephane,  We also have an employee here along with myself that have the disease. My kitchen staff is very good at accommodating me and any customers we have come in with allegeries. We have our salads but in addition to that you could eat our strip steak, beef tourenados without sauce, rosemary pork, and our airline chicken. Most of our burgers and sandwiches you can have just without a bun. Just let your server know at your table and they will aware our kitchen staff . But please be assured you are in good hands with us. If you have anymore questions please don't hesitate to ask."

I was definitely pleased. Not only did they understand what I needed, they're also especially sensitive to Celiac because some of their staff (and their manager) have it. And while I didn't end up ordering food (I was up for 25 hours that day and a little sick to my stomach), I will definitely go there to eat sometime soon.

Bravo, Bravo!

Today involved a journey into a brave new world - dining out with Celiac. And the journey was an astounding success!

Yesterday was my mom's birthday. So my sister, grandmother, cousin and I went out shopping and to lunch. Based on previous correspondence with their management, I knew that Bravo had a gluten free menu. But I still wanted to put in a bit of preparation. I went online and figured out what I wanted. I settled on the Chicken Griglia. Were it not for the IBS, I'd have gotten a salad - Bravo's salads are wonderful.

I called the restaurant first, to let them know I was coming and that I have special nutritional needs. The man I spoke with assured me that they educate all of their staff about cross-contamination and proper procedures. I couldn't believe how knowledgable he was. He even made us a reservation, and noted next to it in the book that I was GF. When we got their, our table was ready with a GF menu on it.

The chicken comes with GF pasta and roasted vegetables. Not wanting to risk anything that isn't naturally GF, I asked for it without the pasta. And I'm glad I did - it was a huge portion of chicken and vegetables, and I never could have finished all of that with pasta. It was flavorful and moist, and the veggies were perfect.

Now for the amazing part - I then went shopping for 3 hours. You see, normally I get nervous after dining out and want to go home in case I get sick. But I didn't feel the slightest bit off, and I wasn't anxious at all.

So a huge, warm, heart-felt thank you to Bravo. They made my first experience dining out GF easy, welcoming, and delicious. They've always been one of my favorite restaurants, and this cements it. I recommend them to anyone.

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change...

That's the part of the serenity prayer I've always had trouble with. I change the things I can, and I know the difference. Yet I stubbornly persist in not accepting things, even when I know I can't change them. Today, I'm going to say something important. Not because you need to hear it, necessarily, but because I need to remind myself of it yet again:

Healing is a process.

I hate those four words. After so much time in pain and exhausted, I was at least a little excited once a name was put to the monster and I was given the means to beat it. But what I didn't take into account was the damage that had already been done. There's no telling how long I've had Celiac, aside from the fact that I've had serious symptoms for two years, and I did not have it in spring of 2007 (that's when they did tests and diagnosed my IBS). So I had it anywhere from 2-5.5 years before it was diagnosed. That kind of damage can be pretty extensive.

But I got excited - I've had 3 good days. Things seemed to be turning around. And then the day after my last post, I woke up in so much pain I was shaking. I stuck it out and worked through it, but I paid the price - I couldn't work Friday or today.

Here's the thing about chronic pain - you get used to it. That's not to say that you like it, or that you don't notice it. But it becomes a part of your day. I get up, I'm hungry, I'm tired, I have to go to the bathroom, and I'm in pain. All of those are assigned essentially the same value. But having those good days (good = 4 or less on a 10 scale) kind of took me out of being used to it, making a bad day that much worse.

So instead of hoping that I'll magically just be all better, I'm going for a new, more realistic hope. I was diagnosed in October of 2012. By my birthday (September 2nd), I'd like to be at least mostly pain free (more good days than bad). Fingers crossed, rice bag on, and snuggie equipped. I'll keep you updated.