Call for Gluten-Free Help…and Gluten-Free Apple Cinnamon Breakfast Quinoa!

(Yes, I really want this book!)

I need your help.

All of you knowledgeable foodies out there!

As I mentioned in last week’s What I Ate Wednesday post, my naturopath has suggested I try out food combining to see if some minor symptoms I am having go away.

I have looked into food combining and while it confuses me quite a bit, I am willing to give it a try. However, before I get into it I thought I would try a couple of other experiments first.

I’m going to try giving up gluten for 3 weeks, and then introduce it back into my diet, and then try giving up dairy for 3 weeks. I could try them both at the same time but then I won’t know which was bothering me (if any are).

I don’t have very bad symptoms at all, so it’s not a major quality-of-life issue going on here, but I am curious to see if I notice a difference either way.

In general, I avoid eating a lot of gluten. Pasta and bread are not foods I eat on a regular basis at all. And it’s easy enough for me to buy rice pasta and some gluten-free bread. But I want to try out some interesting recipes to get me through this three weeks of ‘gluten freedom’.

I started a board on my Pinterest account for gluten-free recipes and scoured blogs I know are great for healthy eating with gluten-free options, such as Chelsey’s, Gina’s, Holly’s and Angela’s blogs. I got some great recipes… but they’re not exactly suitable ‘meals’. Take one look at my board and you’ll know what I am talking about…um, gluten-free brownies? Sure! Gluten-free muffins? Oh yeah. Gluten-free pancakes? No worries.

So I guess I liked the look of the gluten-free goodies.

However, you guys have always impressed me with the range of health issues you’ve all battled, so to any of you who follow a gluten-free diet, please share your tips and tricks wtih me! I am particularly looking for dinners that don’t involve gluten-free pasta, because I already have a bunch of those (thanks Chelsey, thanks Angela!) and I can’t wait to try them.

Any other advice is well received too! And if you have your own story about how changing to gluten-free eating changed your health, and you don’t mind sharing, please do! Either publicly in the comments below, or by emailing me. I am so curious to see how this dietary change affects people.

Now to change topics really quickly (keep reading for today’s recipe!) – I added a page to my blog…a Recipes page. It can be found along the top menu of my blog’s homepage – I’ve indicated where in the image below (check out the big pink arrow!):

I hope to keep this page regularly up to date – it has a listing of all my recipes by category: BREAKFASTS, APPETIZERS/LIGHT MEALS, MAIN MEALS and DESSERTS.

On each category’s page is a list of all my recipes with a link to their page and, next to the recipe name, an abbreviation letting you know if the recipe is vegan (VGN) or gluten-free (GF). Also, if it was a recipe which was sweetened, I will put in brackets after the recipe name which natural sweetener was used (stevia, maple syrup, agave nectar, coconut sugar, Sucanat etc). This way if you’re sensitive to a particular sweetener or you’re looking for a recipe that can be made vegan or gluten-free, it’s easy for you to find one!

If you have any feedback on this page please let me know, I’d be happy to hear. It’s brand new and so I am sure there will be a lot of kinks to work out ;).

For now, I’m happy to share with you a delicious gluten-free breakfast that I enjoy – apple cinnamon breakfast quinoa!

Now, I’ve had a love affair with my breakfast oatmeal for as long as I can remember (click here for one of my favourite variations on this morning oatmeal).

But, as I mentioned in my What I Ate Wednesday post, my naturopath really recommends alternating breakfasts with something else. She says that having the same breakfast every day can lead our bodies to become sensitive to what we’re eating, even if what we’re eating is really good for you (and she heartily approves of my oatmeal recipe, you’ll be pleased to know ;)!)

So I’ve started making some different breakfasts, such as (and feel free to steal these ideas!):

• gluten-free waffles with nut butter, Greek yogurt and a drizzle of honey
• a slice, of gluten-free bread, toasted and with a smear of margarine and some scrambled or poached eggs
• on days when I’m less hungry, an apple with some nut butter such as almond butter or tahini
• breakfast quinoa!