We had a fun-filled day, and I just tossed this random greek pasta salad together as a last-minute meal (measurements may not be exact). We typically make something similar to this meal as kabobs and a greek salad, but I was honestly too lazy to get the grill going, and our son needed some carbohydrates. Please feel free to play with this recipe: disclaimers (oxalate, salicylate, histamine, etc.) and alternative options listed under tidbits at the bottom of the post. […]
When we first started diet changes, I was overwhelmed by excitement and fear. Things were great. We had hope and direction. I felt excited and empowered to continue removing glutamate foods because we finally saw progress-not huge progress, but progress. Not to mention I was researching like a fool and connecting excess glutamate to so many of our son's symptoms. At the same time, I was also overwhelmed with the new food sensitives, underlying issues we were uncovering, and the genuine fear of how we would sustain this lifestyle for our son as he grew older. How [...]
This Greek Tzatziki Dressing is hands-down, my favorite salad dressing. It is quick, easy, and extremely forgiving. The creaminess resembles the traditional yogurt-based tzatziki, with the cumber and spices give it a refreshing zest. We enjoy this dressing tossed with mixed greens, tomato, clean olives, red onion, cucumber, radish, and green peppers. I hope you enjoy this simple dressing as much as we do. […]
We occasionally get letters or comments from parents that have seen improvements in health with REID. To help provide hope to so many still in the trenches, I’ve decided to make more of an effort to share some of these comments (with their permission, of course). Many of us don’t have it all figured out, but we cling to the hope and words of progress. Everyone’s journey is different, diet changes may not reap huge changes for all, but it is absolutely helping some. Thank you for giving us hope… "12 weeks. Such a short amount of [...]
I don't know if it is a fat thing, or he loves the general taste of it, but our son would once only eat a salad if it had a mayonnaise-based dressing. While this dressing has evolved over the years, it is pretty flexible, don't hesitate to play with it- leave the avocado out and keep it simple. We love this dressing mixed with a bag of cabbage/coleslaw mixture or in a Mexican Chopped Salad. For the Mexican Chopped Salad, we combine the dressing with fresh mixed greens, tomato, jicama, cucumber, avocado, black beans, radish, and mango. [...]
Since I first started the Facebook group, I have longed for there to be a sense of community and support around diet changes. The last thing I want is for it to come off as though any single person has all of the answers, myself included. It is so important we recognize we are not alone in this and that we ALL learn from each other. Because of our community, I was able to meet an incredible mom that is navigating the balancing act of healing and cooking nourishing meals, all while making her family and faith a [...]
I’ve recently been talking with more and more moms just starting to implement diet changes, and I love it! While milk alternatives are certainly not necessary (water is best), they often help with the transition away from dairy/casein. Homemade milk alternatives avoid the MSG-laden additives found in most store-bought milk options. For us, we landed on homemade cashew milk because it was quick, easy, and reduced costs. If you choose to use nuts in your milk alternative, raw (un-roasted) nuts are preferred to keep glutamate risk down. Possible add-ins are strawberries, mango, or cacao nibs for chocolate [...]
There is something about Christmas that always makes me crave gooey cinnamon rolls from my childhood. After beginning to remove sources of glutamate, I thought those days were long gone until I found this recipe by Laura Lea Balanced. The first time I made her recipe we were coming off of three years of being grain-free and were slowly working to incorporate more grains. Because of this, I significantly altered her original nut-free recipe by cutting back on the grains, adding almond flour, removing apple cider vinegar/baking powder, increasing baking soda and adding lemon juice to meet [...]
We occasionally get letters or comments from parents that have seen improvements in health. To help provide hope to so many still in the trenches, I’ve decided to make more of an effort to share some of these comments (with their permission, of course). Many of us don’t have it all figured out, but we cling to the hope and words of progress. Everyone’s journey is different, diet changes may not reap huge changes for all, but it is absolutely helping some. Thank you for giving us hope… "Just wanted to share our progress in just 3 [...]
MSG in your broth? Yes, this can be true- especially when using many store-bought options. Processed store-bought options contain many additives high in free-glutamate (MSG) like- monosodium glutamate itself, natural flavors, hydrolized protein, gelatin, “spices”, hydrolized soy protein, flavoring, dextrose, corn syrup, yeast extract, yeast, and even the terms “broth”, “bouillon” and “stock” as ingredients are known to often contain these higher levels. Additionally, some amount of free glutamate can naturally be created during the process of making the broth and may be problematic for those sensitive to free glutamate. Yes, you heard that right. According to [...]
