No More Garlic Allergy!!

Well, I have "cured" my garlic allergy, which as it turned out wasn't really an allergy at all.  My suspicion about having a rather large yeast problem seems to be what has been wreaking havoc on my system.  I'm not entirely surprised.  This means I am a huge leap closer to being in the full GAPS diet protocol.  Or Simple Carbohydrate Diet.  Or eating Primal/Paleo.  Whatever, it's all pretty much the same thing. 

Recently I have been really good about cutting out dairy and gluten, and keeping it out.  Not only that, but I have made some really good progress in terms of going totally grain free, and I have cut out most fruits too.  It's definitely an adjustment, but with the way I have been feeling, I barely look back.  When I do "cheat", usually because I have not packed enough food for a day out, or am away from home longer than I anticipate, I feel pretty yucky.  And then the cravings hit...having milk, and bread, and cheese, and chips around is like keeping a pack of butts in the house after you have quit smoking.  I shut what I could into the closet so that I don't have to look at it when I open the cabinet, but my subconscious knows it's there!  So far so good!

Anyway, so I figured out that the garlic allergy was actually a yeast problem by adding coconut oil to my green smoothies on a more regular basis.  I knew something in them was causing me some digestive upset, but I wasn't sure what.  So I tried changing up the ingredients, and lo and behold it was the coconut oil.  It's no coincidence that the coconut oils has wonderful anti-fungal properties... so I started using more of it instead of avoiding it.  And after about a week, I stopped getting bloated.  Hmmmm, know what else is a potent antifungal? Garlic! So I tried eating some fresh garlic....nothing! WhoooHooo!! Boy how I missed that flavour! And the added bonus is that I started to be able to tolerate probiotics!! I am only taking Nick's dose of 5 billion, and I should be working my way up to 50 billion....so I have a ways to go.  But definitely progress; so this means that just by eating the coconut oil and garlic and by avoiding sugar, dairy, and grains as much as possible, I have started to kill off the yeast!

So while I feel super encouraged that I have identified what my issue is, I know it's going to be a tricky road to go down...avoiding all sugars, including fruit, and all grains, and all starchy veggies....Hmmm.  That's a toughie.  So I came up with a sort of sugar free treat to help bridge the gap between all out sugar and sugar free.  I know from experience that trying to go cold turkey is a recipe for disaster. 

Now I feel really good about having separated my problems from Nicks...and he is getting better too.  Although, his symptoms went south as soon as I tried to eat some handy gluten free convenience foods, (I think it's the corn), so it just cements my resolve to quit all grains.  Luckily he really seems to like the real foods...I just need to get him to take one bite at a time! 

This little gem is the perfect summertime cool down, great for kids and adults!  For adults, I recommend a fancy cup, and for those who drink can add some rum and this would be totally fabulous.  For kids, just pour into Popsicle molds. 

 

 

Creamsicle!

This is ridiculously yummy, and it tastes just like the real thing! All you need is coconut milk, orange juice, pear juice, and vanilla extract...and ice for the adult beverage.

Firstly, I open my coconut milk the night before (the kind from a can - with the cream, not the light version - coconut fat is really good for you!), so it will get nice and firm. 

Then I squeezed the juice from one orange and added just a dash of pear juice (you probably wouldn't miss this if you didn't have any).  And about a teaspoon of vanilla extract.  I poured this off into popsicle molds, and then blended the rest with ice to create this wonderful, amazing refreshing elixir!  It was absolutely perfect for the 90-100 degree weather we had!