Ok, let's start from the beginning of this year. (A little bit of personal information from me to you - I suffer from chronic back & neck pain from a car accident that happened YEARS ago. I have done everything I can possibly do, outside of having surgery, to help myself. Quite frankly, I am desperately seeking new ways to relieve my pain.) I was reading an article last month that talked about how both Gluten and Dairy cause serious inflammation in your muscles. Since I suffer from constant inflammation it seemed only natural (though extreme) to cut both of these delicious ingredients out of my diet immediately.
So! My amazing husband, entirely on his own, decided he was going to join me in my new diet. That made me feel so great that he would sacrifice both foods entirely to be supportive. He really does everything he can to help me and I really appreciate it. I love him...Ok, anyway! So we are trying this new diet indefinitely, or until I can determine if it will help. We are 3 weeks into the diet (minus a weekend because we visited family and we HAD to break in order to eat with everyone) and so far I haven't seen a huge impact. What I can tell you is how upside down this new diet has turned our lives because cutting out Gluten AND Dairy at the same time has been a huuuuuge challenge. You know, at first, I thought cutting out all dairy was going to be the harder part but once I really started getting into the diet I realized it was Gluten that was going to be the dirty little son of a **$*@ mother *&%*#** evil jerk that appears in EVERYTHING. $H**!!
But I consider myself to be a pretty creative individual so I have decided to see this new diet as an opportunity to spread my wings in the culinary world. All evidence of gluten and dairy have been extricated from the Thomas household and my God am I on Pinterest every damn day...But for anyone who is going through this as well as anyone who has already gone through this process I am happy to report 7 recipes that are entirely Gluten and Dairy Free that taste really really delicious. And if nothing else, I hope it at least inspires you to try those recipes you haven't to add some more flavor into your life!
- Kale Sausage & Potato Soup (Substitutions: GF Chicken Broth)
- Chinese Fried Rice (Substitutions: GF Soy Sauce)
- Gluten & Dairy Free Corn Meal Fried Chicken (Substitutions: 2 Eggs for the Buttermilk)
- GF Spaghetti & Meatballs (Substitutions: Corn Pasta and Daiya Shredded Cheese)
These next few meals I just winged on my own but I've added some notes with recommendations on the products for best results:
- Gluten Free Hot Dogs (Udi's GF Hot Dog Buns are OKAY - you MUST let them thaw completely and I'd strongly recommend toasting them. Overall, it kind of tasted like a stale hot dog bun but after going 3 weeks without any bread substitutes it tasted great to me.)
- Chicken Wings with Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ Sauce (Feel free to choose a hotter sauce but remember without the Blue Cheese or Ranch Dressing you won't have anything to "cool" the heat.)
- Taco Night with Corn Tortillas or a bowl of rice with LOTS of Avocado & Fresh Pico de Gallo
