Healthy Websites for Celiacs

Celiac Disease has made me even more passionate about healthy eating. Because of the damage that was no doubt done to my digestive system for the 40 years before my diagnoses if I'm going to eat something I want it to be the best choices I can possibly make.

So if you're looking for healthy sites with good information about what to eat and what not to eat here's a few of my favorites;

Food Babe: This site covers all kinds of things as the "Food Babe" investigates what's in our food. It talks about GMO's, Protein Powders, Juicing, and also has a section for recipes. Although I've only discovered this site a little bit ago, I'd say its one of the best on the web for those who want to eat healthier.

The Eat Clean Diet:  This site is not gluten free but does give great food choices without chemicals, preservatives or additives. The books she sells on the site do have a gluten free option in it's diet lists. It's a healthy natural diet the way God intended food to be. 

The Gluten Free Vegan; A great site that definitely understands gluten, cross contamination issues and how to create healthy and gluten free vegan meals. 

And of course our basic Celiac sites;

Celiac Disease Foundation:  If you have a question about living with Celiac Disease you'll find the best answers right here. This site explains the disease, how to cope and everything else you need to live the Gluten free lifestyle. 

Celiac.com:  This site is another excellent GF Celiac site for understanding and living with the disease. 

Celiac Central:  This site is newer than some of the other Celiac sites but all the information is there in clear and concise articles. 

Celiac Disease Delphi Forum; This site used to be one of my favorites and helped me a lot when I went GF over 10 years ago. Then the moderators removed a post they disagreed with that I thought was good information that people needed to know. They felt the information was false and deleted the post. It was regarding that some wine is stored in wooden kegs that are sealed with flour. The poster thought that people should be aware of this and make their own decisions as to whether or not to consume that type of wine. The moderators were adamant that this wheat flour did not end up in the finished product and removed the post. Personally I felt they were imposing their own views on everyone else and that was wrong. A person should be able to make their own decision regarding this risk. Personally, I won't drink wine aged in a keg. I have enough problems without taking this needless risk. 
The fact that the moderators removed this post because they didn't agree with it, made me wonder what else they hide? 

Okay, those are some of my favorite healthy eating sites. Enjoy!

A Celiac Vegetarian Day

I've eased into Vegetarianism slowly. Previous diet experience had me rushing head first into the Eat Clean program and I'm ashamed to admit, I crashed. I did great for almost a week and then life happened and I cheated a little, then a little more, and then forgetaboutit!

I'm caught between wanting to be a Vegan or just going Vegetarian. Its a tough choice. Which is healthier? Which one will I be able to sustain for life? I'm going Vegetarian for now. Once I get this nailed down I'll consider the Vegan aspect. I think as a Celiac our choices are a bit limited anyway and I wonder why I want to limit it even more? From everything I've read I think a plant based diet is healthier.

So here's my typical day as a Vegetarian so far;

Breakfast;
Coffee with Vanilla Coffeemate
Udi's gluten free bagel with humus
Orange

Snack:
Banana or Yogurt or other fruit-I cut up the fruit and stir it into the yogurt.

Lunch:
Salad with Romaine lettuce, tomato, avocado, shredded carrots, olives, dressing
Nuts (I buy a couple different kinds and mix them together)

Dinner;
Spaghetti with sauce with kidney beans and Parmesan

That was yesterday. I vary this from day to day. I still need  a vegetarian cookbook because I'm a lousy cook! I need to learn how to be a creative vegetarian in the kitchen so I don't get bored.

So far, I don't miss meat at all. Feel pretty good and I'm sleeping well.

Vegan Veggies: Choosing the Best

Vegan's and Vegetarians eat more vegetables over all and so I've been doing my research on how to get the best bang for  my buck. I think if I'm going with this vegetable lifestyle I need to be better versed in types of veggies and what I can do with them to make them tastier. The first step would be to pick the best of the crop.  (I'm still not locked into this lifestyle but I'm ready to give it a go. I just don't know if I'm going pure Vegan or Vegetarian. Anyone else make this decision? How did you decide?)  I'm not even sure if this is the optimum diet for a Celiac and because of this I'm thinking of keeping a food diary and documenting how I feel along with any changes.

Since there are so many veggies in the world, this is only round one in veggie research. 

Choosing fruits and vegetables at their freshest can be a challenge for even the best cook. The entire meal tastes better when the green beans are crisp, the asparagus firm and that apple pie is cooked to perfection. Here’s some quick pointers I found for bringing the best of nature’s bounty to our table.

 Sweet potatoes: The sweet potato should be firm with smooth skin. Chose the ones with as few eyes as possible. The outer jacket can range from tan to rosy-orange. Avoid bruised, split or ones with soft spots.

 Peas: Pea pods should be well filled, not bulging. They should be firm to the touch. Avoid soft, yellowed, spotted or dried pods.

 Carrots: Choose carrots with a deep, orange color for higher beta-carotene. They should be firm and not bend easily. The skin should be smooth and blemish free. I avoid baby carrots as they are treated with chemicals which can cause digestive upsets. Buy the regular ones and skin them yourself for a healthier snack.

Cucumbers: Pick the long, slender cucumber with dark to medium green coloring. Be sure the skin is smooth and without soft spots.Cucumbers turn yellow when over ripe.

 Ice Berg Lettuce: Head should be heavy and solid. Leaves should be green without any brown spots.

Romaine Lettuce: Tightly packed heads with bright green leaves are your best choice. Avoid brown or wilting leaves.

 Green Beans: The perfect bean is crisp and smooth without imperfections. Avoid beans with brown spots or dried out edges.

 Asparagus: The Asparagus stalk should be tender yet firm. The tips should be close and compact. For the more tender asparagus, pick the ones with very little white.

 Strawberries: A summer favorite, these berries should be plump and solid with bright red coloring. Strawberries without the green cap may be too ripe.

 Blueberries: Full of antioxidants, the blueberry is best chosen when it’s firm with a uniform blue hue. Shake the container. If they stick together they may be old. When they move freely they are probably fresher and free of moisture and mold. I always keep berries in the refrigerator drawer.

 Apples: No matter what kind of apple you choose it should be firm with rich coloring. Yellow or green apples with a slight blush are the best. Avoid apples that are bruised or dented. Apples stay fresher in the refrigerator but if your family eat them fairly quickly you can leave the on the counter.

 Bananas: Check to be sure the bananas are firm, but not too hard. Stems and tips should be intact. Avoid bananas with bruises or splits. Green bananas will need a day or two on the counter to ripen.On an experiment I put half my bunch in the refrigerator and left half on the counter. Although the skin of the bananas in the refrigerator turned dark, the fruit inside didn't seem to age much at all. It was still firm. Much firmer than the ones left on the counter that were getting softer with each day. Try this experiment yourself and maybe your bananas will last longer.

 Oranges: Uniform coloring is not as important as a smooth textured skin. The fruit should be firm and heavy. Smaller oranges and those that have thinner skin tend to be juicier than others.

 Cantaloupe: First tap the cantaloupe with your palm and listen for a hollow sound. The fruit should be heavy and the rind under the netting should be changed from green to yellow-cream. Take a sniff, the cantaloupe should have a pleasant, sweet aroma. 

 Well, that's it for today! Tomorrow I'm going to start researching easy recipes for a lazy Vegan cook.  

Happy gluten free eating!

Vegan Diet, Gluten and Celiac Disease

I've often thought about going Vegan. I've read a lot about a plant based diet and all the reviews are good. Juicing is getting decent reviews too. I'm thinking about doing a day of that just to see how it would feel. (More on Juicing another day)

Back to the Vegan diet. I know I feel better when my diet is heavy on salads and fruit. I have times when I think, "I need a salad." However I'm a lazy cook and I worry I wouldn't be up to making Vegan food that tastes good. I purchased the book, Forks Over Knives for recipes and it's smaller volume, Forks Over Knives How to Companion. The how-to information explained more for the beginning Vegan. There are other books on how to go Vegan but a lot of them are heavy on animal cruelty. I know about that, what I don't know is how to be a successful and happy Vegan. Step into any book store or check out Amazon and you'll find lots of Vegan/Vegetarian cookbooks. I watched the Forks Over Knives video so I decided I'd start with that book.

I worry about protein levels. (Am I going to have to do math?) and the vitamin B12.

From what I'm understanding protein isn't really a problem is you incorporate beans, legumes, nuts into your meal plan. Forks Over Knives tells me that plant food has lots of protein and getting a good level of protein on a Vegan diet is easy.

I don't really worry about B12 but most people should. I have a B12 deficiency. I don't absorb it from my food anyway. Is this due to the Celiac damage? Or is it just genetic? Who knows. I go for B12 shots every two weeks to keep my levels up. All other Vegans should take a B12 supplement.

The difference between Vegan and Vegetarian is Vegans consume no animal products. No dairy, eggs, or (of course,) meat. Vegetarians sometimes consume either dairy or eggs. They describe these as Lacto or Ovo vegetarians.

I recently went to the restaurant, Loving Hut and was really impressed with the food. Each gluten free item on the menu was marked with a little heart. We ordered a few things and shared. First was the Summer Rolls with a miso-honey mustard sauce. This was made with tofu carrots & seasonal veggies and all wrapped with a thin layer of rice paper. They gave you 8 rolls and I could order this appetizer for a meal. Next was the Garlic Seaweed Salad, it wasn't my favorite so I let my dining companion have that dish. I've never been a fan of seaweed. My companion ordered a Chickpea-mushroom soup that was also very good. There was a rice noodle dish with mushrooms and tofu that was also very good. They gave generous portions and we had to ask for a doggie bag. And then there was the gluten free chocolate cake. OMG! Luckily we got the last piece.

After my experience at Loving Hut Vegan-ism is tasting a lot better. So I'm thinking of trying it. My doctor didn't think there was any problem with this diet.
Are you Vegan? Have you ever tried it? Got any advice?

Warning: when eating out anywhere always explain gluten to your server. Make sure they understand this is a major health issue. I also ask again when the food is delivered to make sure they did it right. You can never be too careful.