GAPS-Friendly Paprika Chicken

12 chicken thighs, skinned

2 tsp paprika

¾ tsp Celtic sea salt

¾ tsp ground black pepper

¾ tsp garlic powder

1 tsp dry mustard powder

¼ tsp ground cayenne pepper

Plain, unsweetened yogurt (about 1 ½ cups)

The key is to marinate the chicken ahead, so you’ll want to have this marinating for at least 12 hours but preferably for 2 days.

Mix all spices together.  Add yogurt and mix well.  Pour over skinned chicken thighs, coat well and cover.  Refrigerate.

When ready to cook, drain excess yogurt marinade from chicken.
Grill chicken until done.

Oven option:   roll marinated chicken in grated Parmesan cheese and place in oven-proof pan with several tsp of ghee dotted throughout the pan.  Bake at 350 degrees until done – usually 60-75 minutes depending on the oven.

GAPS-Friendly Refried Beans

2 cups Northern Beans – pick through & remove rocks and rotten beans

Soak overnight in clean water.

Next day:  drain and rinse beans.

Put in pressure cooker* with 5 ½ cups clean water, 1 Tb coarse sea salt, and 2 cloves crushed garlic.

Put on high fire until cooker starts hissing/spitting consistently.

Remove to back burner, midway between low &  medium, so that it hisses about 3-4 times a minute.

Cook 60-75 minutes.  Turn fire off and let cool.  The pressure cooker should cool down enough that its locking mechanism releases on its own.

Sauté  2 slices onion, chopped, in ghee until very soft.  Add beans (mostly drained) and:

2 cloves minced garlic

1/8 tsp ground cayenne pepper

¼ tsp ground black pepper

4 tsp ground cumin

1 3/4 tsp coarse sea salt

2 tsp chili powder

Mash beans and mix well.  May add cheese if desired.  

HIGH ALTITUDE:  cook beans 75-90 minutes in pressure cooker.

*If you do not have a pressure cooker, cook beans, water, salt, and garlic on low for 2 or more hours until tender. 

Homemade Breakfast Sausage

4 lbs. ground meat, such as pork or turkey

4 tsp. Celtic sea salt

2 tsp. cayenne pepper

1 tsp ground black pepper

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp rubbed sage

1/2 tsp garlic powder

In a large bowl, mix all spices until well-blended.

Add the meat and mix until thoroughly blended.

Divide into four equal parts and store in quart-sized freezer zipper bags.

When ready to use, thaw one bag in refrigerator overnight.  Shape meat into patties and fry in small amount of ghee.  

I prefer cooking in a stainless steel or ceramic frying pan. 

Great Expectations

Don't expect the doctor to cure with pills the damage done over a lifetime through the ingestion of non-foods, fast food, chemically-laden food, processed food, etc. Start looking at what's on your plate and in your glass and ask yourself, "Is this really FOOD?"  Compare a glass of soda to a glass of orange juice.  Which one is real food?   Compare an apple to a bag of nacho flavored chips. Which one is real food? 

Maintaining your health is your responsibility and no one else.  Love yourself enough to care for yourself.

Running On an Empty Tank

"You look so healthy."  Yes, I have always looked healthier than I have felt.  Thanks to the GAPS diet, I am feeling better than I have in almost twenty years.  However, I still have my days -- those unexplained, no-energy, can't-function type of days that remind me of my need to be cautious.

It is difficult to adequately describe the autoimmune life to someone who has never experienced the ups and downs associated with autoimmunity, but I am going to take a stab at it.  Let's make a generalization and say that the average "normal" person (one who is not autoimmune) starts each day with about twenty gallons of "gas" in her health's gas tank.  She only uses about 10-15 gallons per day, and upon waking the next day, her tank is full again.

Being autoimmune (auto and gas -- get the pun?) means that I almost never awaken with twenty gallons of gas; it's always a surprise.  Some days I awaken with fifteen gallons and some days five, and some days my fuel doesn't arrive until 10 a.m.   If I go to work and use up my five gallons in the morning, then I am without gas to function the rest of the day.  I must borrow gas from the next day, hoping that I am borrowing against a full tank and not a half tank.

Just to keep life interesting, there are seasons in which my thyroid dose is inadequate and I can't seem to get out of second gear.  I have to join the rest of the 40 mph traffic while stuck in second gear, with my engine racing to keep up with the others.  I try to avoid this wear-and-tear on my transmission, but it's not always possible to predict when these moments occur.  Most of the time I just recognize the problem and head home in order to forestall any transmission failure.

Then there are seasons in which my thyroid dose is too high, causing me to burn fuel at a higher rate of consumption than the healthier person.  I may begin the day with twenty gallons, but it is gone well before it's time to retire for the day, and without a functioning gas gauge, I can run out of gas without warning and be stranded somewhere with no gas to return me safely home.

But you look at my "auto" and say, "It's so clean and shiny -- it looks so new!  How can it be out of gas?"   That's the rub.  People will assume that I have a full tank just because the exterior is in good condition, so they will often request that I go on a road trip for which I lack the gas.

The biggest challenge, however, is not to obtain a steady fuel supply but to take care of this 'auto' without obsessing over it.  I want this auto to go on the road and enjoy the journey without the constant worry about getting in an accident, running out of gas, getting a flat tire, or getting bird droppings on my new wax job.  I am enjoying the journey.

One Year on the GAPS Diet

Yesterday completed our first full year on the GAPS diet.   I had gone grain-free for a month before actually starting the introductory part of the GAPS diet.  I am so thankful for the healing that has taken place in that time frame.  Many people don't think that what they eat affects their health, but isn't it amazing how changing the diet does improve health?   Let's take a look at some of my symptoms that have gone away since this diet change:

Vertigo
Ear aches
Ear canal itching, drainage
Eczema
Constipation
Sinus headaches
Ganglion cyst
Bladder spasms
Hair loss
Weight gain / poor metabolism
Hypoglycemia
Allergies
Food allergy to bananas
Dry, thin, frail skin
Nail ridges
Weak, brittle nails
Fatigue
Depression
Heartburn
Flatulence
Jaw spasms, teeth grinding

Many other symptoms are improved greatly, such as mental acuity and anxiety level.  I have also been able to cut my estrogen and DHEA doses in half so far.  That gives me increasing hope for the future!

One more year on the GAPS.  Let's see what this next year has in store for me.  

Lucious Cocoa Peanut Butter Balls

This is my newest (GAPS-friendly) creation, and it's an amazing treat for special occasions.  If you are a fan of the peanut butter - chocolate combination, wait until you try this!

2 cups peanut butter (organic, unsalted)
1 cup finely shredded coconut (organic)
2 Tb raw honey (more to taste)

Mix the above ingredients.  If the dough is too sticky to handle, add small amounts of almond flour or coconut flour until it is a consistency to form into balls.  Shape into 3/4" balls and refrigerate for about an hour.

1 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup organic unsweetened cocoa powder

Mix the coconut oil and honey in a blender until smooth.  Add cocoa powder and mix thoroughly.  In one small bowl, place the cocoa mixture.  In a second small bowl, place additional shredded coconut.  Roll each peanut butter ball into the cocoa mixture and then roll in the coconut and place on a cookie sheet lined with waxed paper.  Refrigerate until firm and then remove from sheet and place in a sealed storage container in refrigerator.

Hint:  if there is any leftover cocoa mixture, drop coconut and nuts into it, mix well, and drop by spoonfuls onto waxed paper and refrigerate.