New Year, New Journey
Hello 2023!
Dear Readers, I’ve never been great at following food trends or blogging for the masses. I write what is close to my heart.
I might craft a post about Paska bread prompted by the war on Ukraine, or develop a recipe inspired by my latest muse, like a simple spinach salad discovered on a trip to Greece. I write from life experiences and I always have.
This new year my food journey is taking a slight detour. In brief, our daughter Clara’s naturopath has recommended she try an elimination diet for a few months.
Please know that the following opinions are merely my own, and I acknowledge that I am not a health professional.
I haven’t mentioned her health here before, but Clara lives with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis, and was diagnosed with widespread complex chronic pain last year. She is the bravest kiddo I know and inspires me on a daily basis.
Danny and I are her full-time caregivers, in partnership with an amazing team of doctors, nurses and many other incredible professionals in the alternative medicine space. It’s…a journey…and one that I am finally able to talk about without going to pieces.
So here’s what I’m working through in this very blunt, honest post: I’m terribly conflicted with the idea of an elimination diet.
Oh, where to start. I don’t diet – at ALL – and have worked hard to create a family food culture that is balanced and relaxed, without labeling food as ‘good’ or ‘bad’, ‘clean’ or ‘dirty’. You probably are familiar with this problematic language around perfectly normal food.
It’s all just food, and we are fortunate to have enough to eat every day.
I want absolutely nothing to do with fad dieting, clean eating, intermittent fasting, and all other diet culture tropes. In my (strong) opinion, these are all forms of eating disorders.
From what I have observed, much of the wellness industry is a joke; a preoccupation with personal health (looking thin) as the primary achievement of well being. Non, merci.
I am so much more interested in how we are all doing mentally, emotionally, spiritually…especially after the last few pandemic years.
Furthermore, in our home, we are body positive. We do not equate body size with moral success/failings. That is Healthism and I am so ready for this mentality to die out. (Here are some examples of healthism – challenge your biases!).
Here’s why I feel SO strongly. Eating disorders and hospitalizations are on the rise, and let me tell you, it only takes one heart-to-heart talk with a parent of a suffering daughter to fully grasp the seriousness of the issue.
Sadly, I’ve had more of these eye opening conversations than I’d like. Descriptions of hospital floors filled with sedated teen girls receiving IV nutrition have broken my heart more than once. As someone who’s love language is feeding people, I feel this crisis deeply.
Our girls Are. At. Risk. of developing a troubled relationship with food and body image, which is why I strive – day in and day out – to model a healthy relationship with food to my children, both daughter AND sons.
In addition to the issues I have with diet culture, it’s hard for me to wrap my head around eliminating ENTIRE food groups because of the advocacy that I do for the zero hunger movement.
So many people here in Nova Scotia – and around the world – are food insecure; they can’t afford to be picky.
One has to acknowledge their great privilege to be able to pick and choose their foods, and pay for specialty ingredients. I know I do.
And yet I understand that grains and/or gluten can be the cause of inflammation in some people. And not everyone can digest dairy. Of course I understand this.
I acknowledge that some people suffer with Celiac disease, which is very different from the carb-cutting diet culture that counts calories and vilifies the humble Daily Loaf.
And although there is currently no cure for arthritis, I would do anything to try and alleviate some of Clara’s discomfort. What parent wouldn’t?
So we will completely eliminate gluten and dairy on the advice of a naturopath. Until at least mid-March. And we’ll observe if my JIA warrior has less pain or is more comfortable. I don’t really know what to expect.
Deep breaths.
We will go gluten and dairy-free as a family. For one, because this is Simple Bites, and I’m not about to cook two types of meals.
Also, we are all on this journey with Clara, supporting her in any way we can. Giving up pizza, etc is the least we can do.
Food and eating together has always been deeply personal for us, with the kitchen and dinner table the heart of our home. That won’t change.
My goal is to create food that sparks joy, ignites conversation and brings comfort to my family, especially during these dark winter months.
Fortunately, many of our favourite meals in the Simple Bites archives are gluten-free, especially winter comfort food.
Here’s what’s on the loosely-written meal plan for Gluten-free and Dairy-Free family dinners. And please leave me your suggestions in the comments!
- Simple Sheet Pan Roast Chicken Dinner
- Classic Beef Stew with Root Vegetables (with a GF flour for thickening)
- Sheet Pan Fish Tacos
- Simple Butter Chicken with Rice
- Sheet Pan Zesty Lamb and Cauliflower
- Rainbow Rice Noodle Salad with Shrimp and Sesame
- Slow Cooker Coconut Curry Red Lentil Soup
- Glazed Ginger Chicken Meatballs (with Gf breadcrumbs)
- Beef & Bean Tacos
- Slow Cooker Cider Ham with Sweet Potatoes
- Hearty Borscht
- Stir Fry Tofu & Power Bowl with Dragon Sauce
- One Pan Roast Sausages with Winter Vegetables
- Chocolate Chip Chili
- Simple Cioppino Soup
Okay, this naturopath-recommended elimination diet is not so very hard…except for the baker in me! Aran’s cookbooks are a great resource; we already love her GF/DF banana bread, recipe over at The Lemon Apron.
Now I need a plan for school lunches. We typically do a lot of sandwiches, wraps and baking…Send me your suggestions.
Thanks for reading. To be continued!
Share your favourite gluten-free/dairy-free recipes in the comments!
Happy New Year and thank you for always writing from your heart. I’m sure your family will do great in your food journey! We’re not a gluten free family but lately my kids have really been embracing onigiri (and the associated kimbap inspired sandwiches) for school lunches. The sandwich style allows you to basically use sheets of nori and short grain rice instead of bread, then use whatever fillings you want. Cheers!
Thank you, Shirley! That’s an amazing idea. We’re looking at some cute onigiri bento boxes right now.
I think dairy free is more difficult than gluten free. I’m not sure if an elimination diet rules out gf flours but I use them to bake all the time. It makes me find recipes that have less flour but I can still make a mean chocolate birthday cake with it. I think you are correct though that when you cook, like you do and I do, most of our meals are naturally GF free.
Eliminating cheese will be a challenge, for sure. Yes we can use GF flours! Should be interesting.
My husband is lactose intolerant so I use sheep and goat cheeses instead of cow cheeses. Not sure if that is bending the rules but manchego is delicious!
I honestly think this will be easier than you may think. You have the support of your family and your readers. I’m hopeful Clara will receive some relief and comfort. I look forward to following along. My daughter has some issues with dairy, so it wouldn’t be a bad idea to introduce more dairy-free meals to our dinner table, as well. Thank you for this post today. Thinking of you and your family as you begin this new way of eating journey.
Thanks for reading and the encouragement, Julia! I really appreciate it.
Happy New Year – 2023 seems to be beginning with exploring unchartered waters but hoping you can find comfort solutions for your daughter. My husband is Lebanese and we cook with a lot of chick pea flour for muffins and loaves and snack breads. Maybe that will agree with your daughter? Best of luck – I always enjoy following along your cooking, entertaining, camping and NS life. Amy from Ottawa
Thanks for the idea, Amy. I like the sound of that, especially for savoury breads.
Hi! This is a time of transition for your whole family but you are all so strong and it will be fine. I have been df for years and 5 years ago my husband was diagnosed with celiac -and has many cross-sensitivities including dairy, oat and garlic. We have found the VioLife brand of plant-based cheese to be one of the best for both flavor and texture and that has made so many things easier. The gf pizza doughs take some getting used to but can still be tasty and a fun family activity. Oatmilk is delicious (although we ended up having to switch to cashewmilk). Enjoy Life is a great chocolate company that is top 10 allergen-free and still delicious – and they make seasonal/individually wrapped candies, too. Best of luck to you all!
Thanks for the tips and encouragement, Kerry! I’m taking notes. 🙂
Happy New Year! As someone who is also exploring the idea of an anti-inflammatory diet, but also very wary of diet culture, I’m so happy to have someone whom I deeply admire to follow on this journey! I will say, one of the easiest ways I’ve found to turn sandwiches or wraps into gluten-free is to just turn them into a salad (not a lettuce wrap). This means I’m not trying to convince myself that a lettuce wrap is the same as bread…I’m just enjoying a really delicious salad!
I really appreciate the vote of confidence, Abigail. Thanks for reading. And good luck on your own journey.
My daughter decided to eliminate dairy and gluten from her diet in her 20s to address pain related to a health issue (not arthritis related) and it changed her life. She found that once she got her health issues under control, she could tolerate small amounts of gluten or dairy once in a while. I hope your daughter has a similar positive experience. I discovered David Leibovitz’s buckwheat chocolate chip cookies along the way (I replaced the regular flour with a gf flour blend as suggested by a reader in his comments) and we all love them. A trick I read about and use when using all gf flour in converting regular baking recipes is to measure by weight and replace 1/4 of the gf flour with gf oat flour for a nicer crumb. All the best to your family on this journey.
Thanks Janice I will be looking up those cookies!
You can do this!! Change your perspective and don’t look at it as a diet but as a lifestyle change to find pain relief for Clara. Maybe she can eliminate a few foods from her diet and have pain relief rather than add medication.
I have Celiac disease so I am GF and I’m about to start dairy free for EoE. I think dairy free is harder but there are great alternatives out there and more coming out everyday. Gluten free is not really too hard. We had a smorgasbord of delicious baked goods at Christmas! Another instagrammer/ blogger to follow for both GF and DF easy meals is Clean Monday Meals. She has great meal planning and lunches.
Great tips! Thank you.
Happy New Year! I wish your family the best.
As for GF&DF options, I would like to suggest the following: Lachanorizo (Cabbage&Rice), Gemista (Stuffed Veggies), Giouvarlakia (RiceMeatball Soup), Kakavia (fish Soup), Briam (Roasted Veggies), Roasted Salmon & Quinoa with a herb Vinegraite, Green Bean Stew, Pea Stew, Fasolada (Bean Soup), Gigantes (Baked Beans with tomato sauce), Lentil Soup, Garbanzo Bean Soup. All are traditional Greek dishes that are very easy to make. In my Greek-biased opinion. I can point you to a recipe if you want.
As for baking, I substitute GF flour and add xanthan gum per the instructions on the box. I have had great luck with waffles. Additionally, I substitute Almond milk for milk and buttermilk.
I am on an elimination diet myself (Low-Fodmap diet) and although I strongly believe in all food is good, I gain back my life by not eating certain food groups.
This is amazing, thank you Ioanna. I’m taking notes! I love Greek food.
Thank you so much for sharing this! I have psoriatic arthritis and plaque psoriasis (both autoimmune disease). My doctor has recommended an elimination diet to see if it would help my conditions. I have tried so hard to be body positive, not label food as good or bad, and unsubscribing from the diet industry, that the suggestion to go on an elimination diet has made me dig in my heels. I am super hesitant to try it. But if you’re doing it and are sharing recipes and your journey, maybe I can give it a try, too. Thank you for being so open about your family’s journey – it is helping me.
Thanks for reading, KB. That’s incredible that we’re on the same path. I don’t know how much time (or mental energy) I will have to document the journey, but knowing people like you are reading is a motivation.
Hi KB, as a psoriasis sufferer myself I found that extra vitamin D (supplements, and 2-3 times the recommended dose) has worked well for me. I don’t live in a very sunny area. I didn’t eliminate dairy but just switched my coffee from milk to oat milk and that also helped. I had a bad outbreak of guttate psoriasis and acupuncture and those little diet changes helped a great deal. Just want to pass that on because it’s such a hard thing to deal with. I still have plaque psoriasis but just a little on my knees and elbows. Way better than before. Good luck!
Hi Aimee,
I’ve been following you for years and buying your cookbooks. I appreciate your approach to food and cooking and agree heartily with your rejection of the diet culture. As an Italian whose love language is also feeding people I fully appreciate the challenge of giving up dairy and gluten (hello, pasta, ricotta cheese, homemade bread). But health challenges are spiraling in my family too. I’m a cancer patient currently on chemotherapy, my son who is only 23 has been diagnosed with an autoimmune disease and extremely high cholesterol levels. He has decided to go gluten free and noticed improvements already. My daughter has gone vegan, primarily because she studies environmental science and feels that this is the best choice for the planet. So all this to say that we empathize with your situation and would like to join you on this journey. I need to follow your lead and stop cooking separate meals for everyone! I wish you success as you do what is necessary to help your daughter.
Thank you for trusting me with your story, Theresa. It is very moving.
And Italian food….I know! All the very best of the gluten and dairy ingredients.
One step at a time, I guess. Read through some of the comments on this post. Readers talk of getting their life back, so that’s encouraging.
All the best on your journey (s).
You must find Jovial brown rice pasta. It’s so close to wheat pasta you won’t miss a thing. Jovial makes SO many pasta shapes too!
A new food adventure and I’m sure you will find so many soul satisfying and delicious things to eat and share. I have a sister in law with lots of food sensitivities and when we cook for her we tend to eat lots of Indian and Asian inspired meals; Chana masala, dairy free “butter” chickpeas, curry and rice, lettuce wraps, Vietnamese pork with rice vermacelli etc. You can make lovely dumplings with a rice and tapicoa flour dough! My kids love chili and all of these leftovers in a thermos for lunch, especially during the winter.
We bake a lot with almond or oat flour, there is even a nearly perfect oatflour waffle recipe on Cookie and Kate that turns out crisp and delicious everytime. Good luck!
Great tips! I dug out a favourite Chinese cookbook as well as a Mexican book. Vietnamese is a good idea too. Naturally GF and DF and so delicious! Thanks for reading
Happy New Year!
First, as a Celiac I can completely understand the toughness of eliminating food groups. Gluten free is a tough one to handle. I highly suggest the book Baked to Perfect or the Loopy Whisk blog by Katarina Cermelj. Her recipes are generally very adaptive to being gluten and dairy free if they aren’t already. Going gluten free depressed me and killed my love of baking because everything I made failed. She restored that love in me and every single thing I’ve made from her cookbook or blog has been fantastic including bread and tortillas and pita breads.
That is a wonderful endorsement, Catherine! Thanks for the practical suggestions. I’m glad you’re baking again.
As a fellow food blogger, food lover, and mother I can whole heartedly sympathize with you and your family. Diet was never a word that entered my mind until my daughter fought her battle with ED and body dysmorphia. We spent the whole summer in between Grade 12 and university in an outpatient program and I was one terrified nervous momma sending her away to school that fall.
We all want our children to live the healthiest, well balanced life they can and when something tips that balance, we want to do everything in our power to make it all better.
It is important to differentiate that in Clara’s case, an elimination diet could lead to her wellness and is not about weight loss or food control issues. IMHO this is a positive way to use a diet and as a parent it’s vitally important that you keep it positive, at least in front of your kids. The words you use in the next few months could have a lasting impact on how she views food. Focus on what she CAN have without mentioning what she can’t have. I know you have never been one to use phrases like ‘cheat day’ or ‘guilty pleasure’ but many people do and they don’t realize what kind of effect it can have on others. Our kids (not only girls) are bombarded with ‘healthy’ images and messages daily that can affect how they view their bodies. I’ll never understand how I missed what our daughter was going through, I’ve never been a dieter and have always encouraged food in all forms. To me, food is love. I know you believe the same, so I wish you all well in this journey you are taking as a family. I hope you can find at least some answers in the next few months. Best of luck, you’ve got this, momma!
Oh my goodness, Bernice, thank you for sharing so bravely. I am so sorry to hear of the struggle you all faced. You rather perfectly illustrated my plea (rant?) in this post. We never know what can impact our children in a negative way. And WORDS/LANGUAGE MATTERS.
I really appreciate you reading, sharing and the encouragement. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
As the spouse of a person with a chronic pain illness (Ankylosing Spondylitis) and the mom of a teen with Oral Allergy and for whom we eliminated gluten when he was failing to thrive at 3 years old, I feel this deeply. With my son, we’ve always taken the approach that he’s so fortunate that he can address his symptoms by simply eating in a way that works best for his body. He can find relief from his symptoms by not eating foods that don’t agree with him unlike his dad who lives with significant amounts of daily pain. It’s been a good mindset for our son and he’s never felt particularly deprived. I think he is well on his way to a healthy relationship with food. For school lunches, we’ve often done diy lunchable type meals. Some cold cuts or salami plus veggies and GF crackers. Or chilli, curry, or soup in a thermos. One big fav is pizza sauce and toppings on a GF tortilla, microwave for 30 seconds, fold in half and cut into triangles. Also, the blog Mennonite Girls Can Cook has a TON of GF and DF recipes. Our favs are the coconut flour brownies and the GF varenyky. It’s my go-to for GF pyrohy/pierogi.
Thanks for reading and your helpful suggestions, Faustina.
Aimee, as a fellow Ukrainian-American I’d like to suggest kasha. Cooked dry with egg and then reconstituted in veal broth (I use glacé for ease), it’s a nutritional powerhouse. Add cooked mushrooms and rotisserie chicken, plus a bit of greens on the side, and you have a complete dinner.
As for packed lunches, how about a frittata? They’re good at room temp. Use a nut milk, and perhaps some roasted veg for extra flavor.
I second the recommendation of Violife “cheeses,” and suggest you try Miyokos butter (cashew based), which is cultured and can be used in baking.
Since I’m healing from two major gut infections (c. diff and giardia) within the past four years, I’m on low/no dairy for now. The “milks” require some testing to see what you like best; I prefer the almond varieties for coffee, oat for tea. It’s a different taste palette that takes some adjusting to.
Best wishes to you and your family for healing and happiness this year. I bet you’ll discover some excellent new recipes!
Thank you! Love these suggestions.
You know I understand this deeply. And for the first year of Jared’s celiac, food was a big struggle for me but once I got over that hump and realized how many amazing options we have, it got a lot better!
Schar makes a lot of great bread and cracker products. GF one to one flour works for nearly every recipe, it can be ‘thirsty’ so adding a bit more moisture or an extra egg helps.
Loopy Whisk is a great resource for baking, Jared made puff pastry and cinnamon rolls at Christmas that were amazing!
Indian, Asian and Mexican inspired meals often are naturally gf and make it easier to not have the wheat products.
One of my girls can be sensitive with dairy and she really likes coconut milk or nut milks.
I appreciate you tackling this topic with such passion and opinions, words matter! We pursue health, strength and energy for what we need to do each day.
Clara has an amazing advocate in you and I love that you’re embracing this change as a family.
Thanks for the encouragement, Breanne. And amazing tips.
Aimee,
Thanks so much for what you’ve shared here. Your honesty and vulnerability are always appreciated. I will follow the journey, and hope things are helpful for Clara.
I appreciate that. Thank you!
I am *so proud of you*.
We recently did a gluten elimination diet with our Chloé and she was tested for Celiac disease. In our case the results were negative so we continue to research and investigate tummy issues, but this comes my way at a very à propos time. I applaud what the whole family is facing for Clara and really pray this brings you some answers.
Btw, I noticed during our brief gluten free season that trying to recreate gluten meals/desserts left me so frustrated and Chloe disappointed – because there is no true replica for flour. That said, I branched out to other desserts and found delicious favourites becoming our new go-tos (like Eton mess, quinoa, rice, etc) rather than my typical bread and dough-heavy menus.
I know you’ll do amazingly and inspire many. Cheering for Clara and you and Danny on the journey!
Hi, just wondering if you eliminated gluten prior to being tested for Celiac.
I like that approach! Definitely doing something similar.
Thank you for sharing your journey! I love your approach to food and having you articulate a lot of what I think was so helpful to give language to our families thoughts on food. I go in waves of decreased gluten and dairy as I get congested from both, which is I think a slight allergen. Some things I go back to that my 4 kids have also learned to love for lunches are hard boiled eggs, sardines, lettuce wraps with lunch meat and pickles, rice or millet ramen noodles(Costco sells a good one if you have access) in a noodle or rice bowl, having yummy extras like pickled veggies make these yummy. Rice cakes with pb and jelly or honey,
Thanks for reading and your helpful suggestions, Mary.
Aimee,
Thanks for sharing. We’ve dealt with gluten and dairy issues in our house for years and at the end of the day, good food tastes good and is good for you. We’ve discovered recipes that taste *better* without dairy and it is so easy to find other grains and flours for baking. You will surprise yourself. Highly recommend making cheese from cashews and nutritional yeast. Desserts can still be fun with a shot of coconut whipping cream. When we eat delicious and healthy food we thrive and feel good. We are blessed that we can source so many different foods to achieve that goal. Good luck on your food journey. I pray that your daughter finds relief, and you, too. Parental stress over this is a thing, too. Take care.
Thank you! We already love nutritional yeast and cashews so will have fun playing around.
I struggle with IBS and did the low-FODMAP elimination diet for 6 weeks exactly two years ago. It changed my life. I found out what was bothering me and was able to (for a year) give my body an break and time to heal. This was after years of tests and doctors that couldn’t help me. Now I have been able to reintroduce some of the foods I cut out.
I was really hard, and an ongoing journey for a condition that doesn’t have a cure. Before this I had given up dairy, which is still hard which my Italian family! I still miss cheese, but so worth the pain relief I get.
I just wanted to say taking the approach to do it together as a family is so amazing. It is so much easier to make these changes together. I hope it helps! And I really hope your daughter finds some relief. Thanks for sharing, and looking forward to the dairy free recipes!
Thanks incredible, Kaila! Thanks for sharing.
We’ve had to eliminate both for different reasons in different combinations at home and being gluten free has been life changing for two of us. It’s sooooo much easier when there’s a direct correlation to pain. This might be an incredible answer for your family… Or it may not be. And then you’ll know. Danielle Walker’s cookbooks and blog were instrumental for me to understand that we can eliminate foods AND seek food freedom. Also body positive here and my kids have never been told they “couldn’t” eat things — but you better believe neither would choose the foods that cause them pain. So we’re forever finding alternatives ♥️ canned coconut milk replaces yogourt or cream or milk in most of my baking. Oat milk is my daughters prefered milk alternative whereas I prefer cashew. Bobs red mill 1 to 1 bakikg flour is our current flour mix. Becel makes vegan margarine sticks that are great in baking. Turns out my family prefers vegan margaine on popcorn after years of butter popcorn ???? (doing without cheese was a better way for us to start vs cheese substitute)
Clara is lucky to have you.
Awesome suggestions! I took some notes with me shopping. 🙂
Thank you so much for sharing. As a food positive nutritionist mom of 2 I totally feel you!
One thing we love for lunches that is gf and DF is Onigiri! It’s basically like sushi…a rice ball with fillings wrapped in seaweed. We also love doing a charcuterie style lunch with bits and bobs as well as rice noodle bowls. Hope that gives you some ideas!
Love the onigiri idea. Clara loves bento boxes. Thanks!
Aimee,
I’m a long time reader of your blog and have great respect for your relationship to food and family. I noticed many years ago that my body and brain feel better when I don’t eat wheat – so I’ve learned to use a lot of GF substitutes for pasta and flour. GF pastas abound. They are not all created equal. Different people have different favorites. I’m partial to Tinkayada brown rice pasta, but my friend prefers Banza made with garbanzo bean flour.
The blogger and cookbook author Danielle Williams (her website and cookbooks are called Against All Grain) has some wonderful recipes of the kind you are looking for. I think you may also find her story inspiring. She, too, has healed the symptoms of chronic illness by changing the way she eats. In the baking department, her zucchini bread is quite good. For cooking, she uses coconut aminos in place of soy sauce. If soy isn’t a problem, then you can use GF tamari soy sauce.
Non-dairy substitutes for milk and cream can be convincing stand-ins when cooking, and vegan butter works well in baking. My favorite in stick form is Earth Balance, but there are many options. Personally, I’ve never met a non-dairy cheese that I like. If you find one (or make one) – please let us know!
Thanks for all the suggestions, Stephane!
As it happens, there’s a non dairy cheese made in PEI called Fresh Start Fauxmage that is super good!
https://www.findfreshstart.com/
I love mac and cheese and am also DF/GF. Using lentil/garbanzo bean noods and a cashew “cheese” sauce is just the ticket to hit those cravings! Blessings as you ride this journey!
I’ll try anything once. 🙂 Thank you!
Happy New Year – 2023! I used to own a business that I provided lunches and family meals that were often gluten free. I would often use https://elanaspantry.com/ for her recipes, especially the gluten free section. I love, love to bake and her recipes never tasted any different than my regular recipes with gluten. I wish you all the best in this new journey for your family and hope this is the answer to helping your daughter be more comfortable.
Great suggestion, thank you, Tanya
Happy New Year Aimee! I have two little boys with eczema and know the struggle… dairy, grains, eggs, soy (at different times). It was also on the advice of various health professionals. In my mind it was worth a try but never had much effect and was reintroduced without any worsening.
Personally, I found it very hard to wrap my head around at first also. However as we already avoids nuts in our house because of allergies, I just thought of it as the same.
I hope your sweet Clara finds some relief!
Thank you for reading, Caitlin.
The Minamilist Baker creates all my favourite DF dessert recipes! I’m allergic to dairy so I started using her recipes probably almost 10yrs ago now and they are some of my most repeated for sure! My friends also never taste the difference!
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A good amount of her recipes are both GF and DF and she’s good at not overcomplicating things and they’re usually easy and fairly affordable 🙂
Great tip! I’ll dig out her cookbook. Thanks Tam!
Along with your cookbook, we (including my 3 tween/teen daughters) love the Oh She Glows cookbooks. All recipes are GF and DF. Maybe getting a new cookbook filled with delicious recipes would make the process a little easier?
I love your approach that all food is good and try to embrace that in our house too.
Good luck!
I an so thankful for my extensive cookbook collection. I’m finding lots of resources!
Thank you so much for sharing your momma heart. It’s so great that you have established a food friendly home and have that as their foundation. There is a difference between dieting for something like weight loss and body dysmorphia and making food changes to improve your health in a more natural way. You know what I mean. I’ve been considering in making some changes myself because of inflammation/arthritis, but have been back and forth because of my kids and the food positive environment we have tried to create. So hard to say “this is okay” but then “no I can’t have it.” Good luck on your journey and hopefully you will see some positive results! Annie’s makes a great vegan GF mac n cheese! Also, Myokos cashew cream cheese and butters are great (if you can get them in Nova Scotia). I have really been inspired by your journey that you’ve shared with us and appreciate your vulnerability.
You get it. Thanks for reading and your helpful suggestions, Jessica.
I’ve come to the same conclusions of late, that the wellness industry can and does promote eating disorders, not to mention the spending of wanton dollars, all in the name of health. I decided long ago I was done with all that!
But as you also have concluded, I do believe elimination diets can be helpful in reducing inflammation and chronic pain. I myself have been 100% gluten free for more than a decade now, and because I’ve learned so much about baking gf and also because there are so many good flour blends, etc, I no longer feel like I’m missing out! I love Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 Baking Flour for most of my everyday baking. And, if you’re still doing nuts, I would recommend Gluten Free On A Shoestring’s Authentic Paleo Pizza recipe, it’s the only one I use now. Oh and as far as cheese, some of the vegan cheeses are alright-ish, and you can even make your own! I’ve collected lots of vegan cheese recipes on Pinterest (I used to be dairy free as well). Anyway, I just wanted to send some encouragement to you and say that I think you’ll get along just fine, though there will likely be a period of adjustment :). Other good baking sites that I like are Mama Knows Gluten Free, and Fearless Dining. xxxx
You get it, Jana. Thanks for reading and your helpful suggestions.
I want to encourage you. I’ve watched my SIL walk this type of road with my niece. They have been able to eliminate and test foods to see which ones trigger flare ups… without wading into diet culture. I think your kids probably already inherently know that some foods impact different bodies in different ways. Maybe you will be able to (eventually) see this as a journey to figure out which foods help Clara feel BEST. As opposed to labeling any food as “bad.” And with the wide variety of foods you already cook in your home, I suspect this will be easier than you fear (once you get through the initial overwhelm.) Look at that list of recipes you already have posted here! You can do this!
Best vs bad. I love that. Thank you Alissa.
I had similar feelings about the perceived neurosis of those who were picky about their diet — partly because it was drilled into me as a child to eat everything on the plate, whether I savored it or not. When in my 30s I finally found the foods I really *must* avoid, it revolutionized my gut health and general levels of happiness with eating! Best wishes for your journey. You’re right that it’s something the whole family experiences (and additional burden on those who make restricted menus and also cook)! My hat is off to them.
Cheers to you! Thats encouraging, Jeremy. Thanks.
I’ve loved your recipes over the years, and I think your daughter is so lucky to have your creativity in the kitchen at her disposal!
I hope I can be some help in the food language department—I’m trying to help my daughters have a healthy view of food and their bodies as well—food is a wonderful tool for unity and joy, but it is also a very functional thing. It gives us energy for the day, but if it causes us pain, it makes sense to choose something else. By framing it as a choice, hopefully that helps her feel empowered, and not a victim of her body. In this day, she has alternatives, so she doesn’t have to “do without” while others enjoy treats.
As for lunches, my goal is always to have some fruit or vegetable(both would be ideal), a protein (meat or nuts in your daughter’s case) and a starch/treat. My kids don’t seem to eat much at lunch, so it’s not a huge deal and we fill in the gaps at home.
I will keep your daughter in my prayers. It’s hard to have to be so tough at a young age.
Very helpful! Thanks for reading and your helpful suggestions, Karyn.
If you don’t know how precious it is that you are changing your meals as a FAMILY to support Clara, take it from my 8 year old nephew who overheard my sister and I talking about this blog and exclaimed “Clara is sooo lucky they’re gonna eating the same meals as her! I had to watch my brother eat cheese happily in front of me and I haven’t had dairy in so long!” It’s not only practical to have everyone on the same food journey in your family, it means so much more to the one with health challenges. Sending much love and all our best to your family as you go through this together.
Thanks Caroline. This is the goal, now let’s see how we can execute without complaining. 🙂
Thank you for sharing about your very personal family journey. You’ve got this! Trying out food (diet) changes is scary but might be incredibly helpful. I’m hopeful for you.
As someone who had to revamp her diet a few years ago due to intolerances/allergies*, I understand and respect your journey, and the aspect of experimentation. I will say one of the hardest things for me was (is) how others felt (feel) bad for me not being able to eat particular foods or dishes, and how I’ve had to try to assure them that because not eating things I am allergic to helps me stay healthy, I truly do not feel deprived. Sometimes I have to bring along my own foods when we are out, and even then I am okay with it. But it’s hard at first, until your tribe fully understands that you are only going to eat “(insert name here)-safe” foods. But it is always a little sad for others that I cannot join them in their experience/enjoyment of a certain dish.
I wear a medic alert bracelet, and carry a wallet card that I can give to waitstaff at restaurants. This helps a lot.
Helping my body optimize health through what I eat, even what I use for hair care, makeup, etc, is a journey that I am happy to share with others, and I appreciate your candor. Someone else might be helped by your journey.
Sending big love to you all.
*About eight years ago I began to develop strong systemic allergic reactions to foods and products that contain added sulfites/bisulfites/metabisulfites, other preservatives and additives, and bleaching agents. These are primarily found in foods and drinks that have been processed or concentrated by the commercial food industry. They add sulfites to protect color, and to make things shelf-stable. Avoiding them has been a journey but my health has improved 100%! So it’s absolutely worth it.
Thanks for sharing, Sarah. That’s intense! Sounds like you handle it all well. xox
Thank you for sharing your heart! My daughter was born around the same time as Clara (I remember reading your blog and feeling the similarity :)). She was diagnosed with a dairy and egg allergy just before she turned 1. I was committed to extending breastfeeding so I went dairy and egg free along with her. As another commenter mentioned, I was surprised by the impact of the mindset of “I’m doing this to keep her safe” vs “I’m trying this diet for x, y, z” –I truly didn’t feel deprived or tempted to cheat and found other foods that I really enjoy.
One treat we enjoyed was Enjoy Life chocolate chips, especially in homemade Lara Bars. I was glad not to be nut free 🙂
One meal I loved to serve to company was chili (+/-) gluten free cornbread. It was easy for some people to add dairy if those chose but still delicious for those without. If you have a decent thermos, I would also pack this for lunches.
Good for you! Very inspiring story.
We love chili and I’m already stashing some in the freezer. 🙂
I started an elimination diet when I was 14 (for complex digestive, not JIA, reasons), and it’s was tricky then to not feel discouraged when some foods were logically bad—chocolate gave me kidney stones, and birthday cake made me dizzy and lethargic, and pizza sent me fleeing for the nearest bathroom. I will always love my mother and adolescent nutritionist’s advice to focus on the good foods I could eat and hang those lists on the kitchen bulletin board. But naturally I also had to have the “bad” foods on my mind as they were the ones that could really hurt me and the ones I had to know to look for on nutrition labels and ask about when being invited over for dinner. When I was a teen my parents did the shopping and cooking and were wonderfully supportive, but looking back I wish they had 1) been aware how frustrating and stressful going out to eat could be when it was meant to be a treat for the family, and 2) asked me on a regular basis to write down what foods I could and couldn’t eat as I added back foods and eliminated. This would have helped take all that information off solely my shoulders. It sounds like in Clara’s case, a blanket avoidance on dairy and gluten will be easier for everyone to be mindful, but if the routine brings relief, maybe for example she’ll prefer certain GF options and not others. Adding and eliminating? Sounds a lot like disordered eating right? Growing up I’ve dealt with strangers’ comments about why am I so skinny and why am I on a diet. I avoid the word “diet” and instead use “dietary restrictions” as it seems to convey that this isn’t something I’ve chosen for myself but I make best of it. Now 10ish years out from my initial diagnosis, the foods I can and can’t eat are engrained in my mind, and it’s less stressful scanning a menu. It’s also less frustrating to go out to eat because I’ve experienced how life-changing it is to choose to eat the foods that make me healthy and strong and not the foods that make me ill. Now that I do my own shopping and cooking, I find a lot of joy in preparing foods for myself that I know exactly what went into it and can savor every bite. Focusing on the reality that food should be joyful and fuel me to do the activities I love like climb, and walk the dog, and teach high school, while also the reality that some foods don’t do that for me, and even do the opposite, has been key for reframing it from disordered eating, to just Julia’s way eating.
Julia! You’re my hero. Thank you so much for reading our story and sharing your own. That is powerful and very helpful. Hat’s off to you; sounds like you’re in a good place and I’m so happy for you.
As many have pointed out, avoiding certain foods because they do not serve your body is very different than avoiding those foods because diet culture labels them as “bad”, and I think the hard work you have done with creating a positive food culture in your home will set Clara up for success here – I wish her and your family all the best on this journey! I definitely understand how daunting it can feel. My mum developed sensitivities to wheat and dairy when I was about 8 or 9, and back in the early 90’s there were VERY few alternatives out there – but today there so many GF and DF options available! As a fellow baker, I recommend The Bojon Gourmet – SO MUCH beautiful GF baking inspiration, and a lot of it DF or vegan as well.
Thanks for reading and your helpful suggestions, Korena!
Committing to an elimination program can be a huge deal. I started my AIP elimination as the pandemic began, but that was after thinking about it for a very long time. After being a vegetarian for 25 years I knew this was my best shot for take control of managing my autoimmune condition, lichen sclerosus. After a couple of months of elimination of several food groups, eating meat and fish again, and several months of reintroductions, I discovered that gluten and dairy are not reactive for me, but I have quite a list of foods that are triggers including fermented foods, chickpeas, mushrooms, lentils, and more. The process was challenging but so worthwhile because I am able to keep my condition in remission by the food choices I make, and that is (usually:) worth the shift in what I eat.
If you’re interested in making gluten free sourdough, I suggest you check out my friend Chantal @freshisreal. She has been creating gluten free/dairy free sourdough recipes for years because of family health conditions. Paleo Running Momma has hundreds of gluten free, dairy free recipes.
Best of luck to your daughter. I hope this journey is a life changing one for her.
Thanks so interesting, Lori! Thanks very much for sharing your experience. I’m glad you’re in a good place with it all.
I am another one of your readers who has had to make those same dietary changes for family members over the years. Most of my suggestions have already been given above, but I wanted to add my encouragement and support. This is a fun opportunity for kitchen experimentation, something I know you’re good at! You might find you enjoy playing around with different GF flour combinations for baking, especially since you are doing it to try to offer Clara pain relief and not as part of some effort to label gluten-containing foods “bad.” Aran has great descriptions of many different flours in her book, and her Olive oil brioche is delicious! Plus, there are so many decent GF options in the grocery store these days, we are still have a pasta night once a week.
Thanks for the support and encouragement, Alison! I really appreciate it.
As someone who is celiac, I’d never want to eat this way if I didn’t have to- but those autoimmune issues do often come with getting rid of certain types of food. The handful of people I know that aren’t celiac but do have autoimmune diagnosis have had good luck with omitting certain things from their diet. Some give immediate relief and some a general uptick in gut/symptom health over time.
You are well-equipped with all your kitchen knowledge and you often showcase a variety of legumes, different types of flours, etc. so hopefully it won’t be like starting from scratch in your pantry, though it’s definitely a big mind-shift.
I wish it weren’t so, but I do wish you and Clara well (and some pain/symptom relief for her!) as you go about this new type of eating.
Thanks for reading and the support, Sarah.
Happy New Year! Thanks for sharing your story and sorry to hear about your daughters diagnosis. I follow a dietitian Desiree Neilsen and she knows her stuff inside and out. Plus most of her recipes are gluten free and dairy free.
Wishing you success and I hope your daughter gets some relief.
Thanks for reading and your helpful suggestions, Barb.
Happy new year
Elimination diet is to see what foods have been inflammatory for your daughter. I often have to eliminate foods to help my IBS symptoms. My son follows the FOD map diet and it’s the only thing that worked. He’s over six foot tall and eats a lot! I found out my cooking with onions and way too much garlic was causing his body to be in a lot of pain. Of course he loves onions and would eat one raw if he could. Good luck to your daughter.
Thanks for reading, Lisa!
I love reading your heartfelt posts and thank you for sharing. We did elimination diets during the pandemic to try to diagnose health issues. Some things we loved that are dairy- and gluten-free are Chickapea brand pasta, coconut milk baked oatmeal, paella, briam with chickpeas, corn tortilla tacos with chipotle mayo sauce, dark chocolate chips for making GF cookies. Personally I liked GF cornbread but my family did not!
I love that your family is going on this journey together. My kids and I don’t eat meat and it often makes me feel isolated from my family…but my in-laws do make a valiant effort to adapt cultural dishes (Polish/Hungarian) for us and I recognize and appreciate this as an act of love. They have mastered pierogi three ways, including vegetarian and also gluten-free for another family member who has Celiac disease. Not to say that you should cook multiple meals of course, but that it will be clear that you all support Clara and the food love will shine through no matter what you’re eating. Keeping everyone at the figurative and literal same table is the best way to continue to avoid diet culture and show that the importance of food goes beyond what you’re eating to how you’re eating it…together.
That’s beautiful, Jill. Peirogi three ways! That is true love. Thanks for sharing.
P.s. I’m trying to subscribe via email on the form below and am getting a Google error!
In my family we have a history of cancer, high blood pressure and heart disease. For the past three years I have been eating mostly plants (vegan most of the time). I thought it would be hard to give up dairy but I don’t miss it too much. I use plant milks and will eat a slice of pizza occasionally (pizza is really hard for me to give up????). We are still searching for a good vegan cheese.
I have learned a lot from Dr Gregor at https://nutritionfacts.org. There are science-based videos related to juvenile arthritis and lots of info on general inflammation. I think of food as medicine and prevention-that keeps me focused on the process. Good luck to you!
Thanks for reading and your helpful suggestions, Kim.
I resonate so much with your hesitations, both from the diet culture/body positivity perspective, the health perspective (eliminating food groups), and the food waste/choice perspective.
I also have been on the other side of elimination “diets” (I wish we had another word!) and seen the effect that removing a trigger food can have on overall wellbeing. I’ve seen this for myself, my kids, and my husband–all in different ways!
One thing that stuck out to me that you wrote: ” a preoccupation with personal health (looking thin) as the primary achievement of well being.” This has been something huge that has changed for me. I don’t make my food choices because I want myself (or someone else) to be thin. We don’t gasp at the number on the scale and try to “lose weight.” We take into account our overall wellbeing–how do we feel? Do we have energy? Do we have pain? Are we in a stressed or anxious state all the time? Basing our food choices on how we FEEL after we eat certain things seems a much healthier way to interact with food.
This also keeps the perspective on “what works for me”–not vilifying foods or food groups for others. Many of us can eat anything and feel fine. Many of us can’t. Finding a personal “this is how I feel best” path is quite a journey, but worth taking.
If you see improvement from removing gluten and dairy for your daughter, you’ll be so inspired and motivated to continue with it. And if you don’t, you’ll be glad you tried it to know for sure. It’s doesn’t have to be thought about as an elimination. It’s choosing other options for now that may work better for her.
Good luck. I really appreciate your thoughts. Thank you for sharing so openly. Best wishes!
I have used the recipes from Allergy Free Alaska (GF and DF) and Gluten Free Goddess with success . I wanted to learn the techniques involved with creating baked goods with GF flours and these websites were very helpful. Having been a lifetime baker , I found that the techniques for using GF ingredients were not complicated and the results very satisfactory.
For a starting recipe, the Fluffy Cinnamon Rolls from Allergy Free Alaska are wonderful.
I wish you and your family all the best for 2023!