Honey, vanilla, cinnamon roasted almonds

Yes, just as good as it sounds!!

Why didn't I think of this before? I eat almonds, I eat honey, how about honey roasted almonds??

Duh. Guess I was just too busy surviving the first couple months of motherhood with a cranky baby :)

I'm still perfecting the implementation of the yummy idea. After all, almost every recipe I looked at instructed one to sprinkle the almonds with sugar after glazing.

Fail!

So I tried a couple things. Here is the mess in my kitchen as I tried. Along with Sophie la girafe, little K's best friend. First, I tried covering 1 cup of almonds with a glaze of:

1 T. melted coconut oil
1 T. honey
several sprinkles cinnamon
1 glug vanilla
few shakes sea salt

I put in a 350 degree oven for probably 10 minutes. It got almost beyond the point of caramelization. To the point of burning. And very little glaze actually stuck to the nuts...

Trying again...

This time, I roasted first for 10 minutes on 350, then glazed in a pan. It worked a little better. Same basic recipe, just 1 T. of water added to the mix.

I brought glaze to a boil over medium heat, then added almonds and stirred for about 5 minutes. At this point, it seems like all the recipes say "until the mixture is completely absorbed". Umm... that didn't really happen... So I just dumped them out after probably 7-8 minutes onto some parchment to cool.

Of course, I had to eat some before they cooled. My house smelled like that kiosk of yummy nuttiness in the mall where you walk past and your mouth waters...

Good, but sticky.

I'll let you know when I figure out how to do this. In the meantime, I'm going to go eat more sticky almonds!!

SC

Update: I just didn't cook them long enough. I eventually put the sticky ones back in the pan, watched veeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeery carefully, and took them out just before being burned! You can tell because the glaze becomes less stringy, and the sound is more buzzy than bubbly. Very scientific, I know... I can't stop eating them. Well, I could, but why??

Crack Pot

No, it's not what it sounds like...

I use my Crock Pot every waking hour. Ok, maybe not that constantly, but it sure seems like it.

Imagine my dismay, therefore, when I see a miniscule white vein running down the side of the black ceramic crock. I tried to convince myself it was just leftover chicken slime that wouldn't scrub off.

Of course, the next time I used it (which was actually immediately after washing...), it cracked down the middle. I'm guessing it would have been in two pieces if I had let it go any longer. Insert sad face here.

Luckily, I am a pack rat. I still had my ancient (albeit smaller) Crock Pot with the broken switch thingy (the correct word escapes me). So, I figured out how to turn it on by grasping on tightly with a potholder over my hand, and voila! Back in business!

I'm still planning to buy another larger slow cooker, just haven't been anywhere to look for one. Guess I could order online. Was thinking about spending beaucoup bucks on a nice one, but it looks like those are just as burdened with troubles as the cheap-o ones. So, until I find a new one, the little one will have to suffice.

So what do I do with said Crock Pot that keeps it forever plugging away on my counter?

Let's see, mostly chicken stock. Lately, though, I've tried two new things that have gone over pretty well.

Crockpot Chicken and Quinoa

and

Slow Cooker Applesauce

Both from fellow bloggers, but who actually blog regularly and take pictures and other such helpful things!

The quinoa recipe was a nice change from the two other foods I've been eating as of late. It was more soupy than I envisioned, but was still yummy! I used the dark meat from a cut up chicken while using the chicken breasts for tasteless stir-fry. I would recommend it!

The applesauce seemed like a great idea, and it was! It was easy, as it doesn't require laboring over the apples for a long time (no peeling, slicing thinly, etc.). It smelled GREAT, though at 4:30 this morning, I was a little worried it might burn. I put a little water in just to ease my mind and went back to sleep. (For 20 minutes until little K woke up for pre-breakfast...)

It turned out a tad soupy, but that's what I get for needlessly putting water in there. It tasted REALLY good, especially for using out-of-season grocery store apples. Can't wait to try it this fall with some flavorful apples!!

So now comes the real question from this cheapskate: is it cheaper than pre-made applesauce?? Though the flavor is vastly superior, I'm wondering... Meijer carries some that lists only "organic apples" as ingredients, and I've tolerated it just fine! It is about $2.50 a jar for about 3 cups. I used up most of a bag of organic apples that was, I believe, $4. I think I got a little more than 3 cups.

Sadly, I think the yummy homemade stuff is more expensive! Still a great idea for fall, though.

Will keep in mind. Ok, enough boringness.

SC

So, about those tomatoes...

When will I ever learn??

You know, I cut things out of my diet for a reason. I don't just look at a particular food one day and think "Hey, maybe as a unique sort of torture, I'm going to deprive myself of that!"

So you would think that I would be extremely cautious about adding things back into my diet that I knew had caused problems. Not so.

I plan to do a post on breastfeeding myths sometime. I know I could have benefited from some just practical, real-world advice. I only did a little reading before little K's birth, and it all seemed too oversimplified. Um, yeah. Right on...

I digress. I promise this is related... On to the tomato story. So, poor lil K suffered from painful gas and what I'm going to call "silent reflux" for awhile. Like months on end, awhile. And I was too:
stupid?
stubborn?
sleep-deprived?
to really figure out the cause. As you know, I already have pretty limited choices for food. I wasn't about to limit it even more.

I started giving her probiotics after a couple weeks. That helped. Duh. Another post on that.

I stopped dairy when she was about 2 weeks old, too. Mostly because the studies of "colicky" babies and probiotics had both groups on a dairy-free diet.

I finally realized after a couple months that the reflux was a problem and causing lots of crankiness and trouble sleeping, so I cut out citrus, chocolate, and tomatoes. Happiness resulted. (Well, for the most part.)

Last week, I thought I'd give some cooked tomatoes another try. Didn't seem like so much of a problem at first, so I continued to eat the leftover spaghetti sauce. (More on my current eating habits later). Lil K started to get cranky with teething pain. Ok, not that weird.

Then the inconsolable crying started. The not being able to lay her down without bloodcurdling screams. The flashbacks to the first couple months of her life. The banging of my head against a wall.

Tomatoes?? Yep. I ate the last of them Wednesday afternoon, right before this whole thing dawned on me.

You would think, given the horrendous issues I've had with nightshades, that I would be wary of them in the first place.

Mommy fail.

By now, Saturday afternoon, she's still having some issues with sleeping through naptime and getting overtired/cranky, but that is not unusual. Other than that, she's happy, sleeping normally at night, and laying down to sleep or play with no problems.

Hallelujah. Beware the tomatoes.

(P.S. I consumed some chocolate around the same time, which was also a bad idea. But that just seemed to make her extremely hyper and have trouble sleeping. Will have to try an independent test again later...)

(P.P.S. I wanted to include a picture with this post. I really wanted to take a can of tomato juice and bang it up, put some ketchup around it to make it look like a tomato can had been murdered... but I don't have that kind of time. Nice thought, though :) )

Really?

So I'm considering getting back into blogging. Though, as I type this, I have a very cranky 5-month-old whining at my side. Nothing seems to help except chewing on something constantly. I'm bouncing the bouncy chair with my foot, feeling guilty for "ignoring" her. (I have this complex about having to constantly be directly paying attention to her while she is awake, which is another post for another time.)

Apparently, teeth are quite annoying and painful.

So, I may or may not be reentering the blog-o-sphere (Is that really a word??). Reasons I would like to:

1. I like to write. Not necessarily for anyone else's benefit, but just because I like to. Unfortunately, many a journal have been started and subsequently eaten by dust bunnies for lunch. Maybe a blog would do it...

2. I like to share my experiences. Okay, maybe oversharing might be the word. I have nothing to hide; therefore, I sometimes go into more detail than many would care to hear. Plus, something about being a healthcare professional just kind of makes you not care if you talk about "taboo" subjects like poop or something.

I also have a lot of experiences that might be helpful for someone else to hear about, especially when it comes to food and such. And some baby stuff. I'm clearly an expert now...

Reasons why blogging may not be such a good idea:

1. See #2 above. Oversharing could be an issue. Though I may be blunt when writing, I'm also quite non-confrontational. Wouldn't want to offend people, start arguments, or (heaven forbid!) invite criticism.

Okay, that's really two things. This numbering thing is keeping my thoughts so organized... yet another reason not to blog right there? Stream of consciousness?

I could potentially dip into so many different topics, with no particular rhyme or reason as to why.

2. See intro. Said baby takes up just a little bit of my time, though I'm feeling much better than in previous months, thank you.

(Now I'm back after a hiatus that involved a poo-splosion, some silly songs, breastfeeding, and the beginnings of a nap... maybe...)

3. Ok, enough about why I shouldn't continue a blog. Here goes nothing. If you don't like it, don't read it. But if you want to read it, hope you enjoy!

For Realz...

I have a baby. Sometimes, that doesn't even still seem real. I'm a mom. Crazy stuff!!

Due to the above facts, no time for blogging. Even less than before. This whole crazy diet thing and small babies don't really jive too well together. No time.

I spend all my time taking warm baths and sipping hot chocolate, reading a good novel, holding my quiet, always happy little one, etc. Riiiiiight.

I have done some research, though, that I will share sometime when life lets me breathe for a minute. (All together now- Riiiiight.)

Little girl is doing pretty well, FYI. She does seem to have some tummy troubles, but has gotten a LOT better with no dairy for me and probiotics for both of us. Plus, just growing up a little has helped.

She's pretty daggone cute. Not like I'm biased or anything.

Off to take a shower for the first time in a few days. Ick.

Trial and Error

I've been going along pretty well with my modified diet. Basically still all whole foods and SCD/GAPS legal except (and it's a BIG except) some Tinkyada pasta and Kinnikinnick pizza crusts. They don't seem to bother me more than anything else.

Until, I tried making a cake. I even used a mostly GAPS-friendly recipe. I'd been fighting a craving for chocolate cake for so long... I just finally had to do it. So I made it with coconut flour (which was new), honey (???), baking powder (most likely a no-no), coconut milk, obviously safe cocoa powder, and butter. I think that's about all.

Can't for the life of me figure out what exactly it was. I know lots and lots of ppl who use the traditional Clabber Girl baking powder with no probs. Don't think it was the cornstarch in it, as the pizza crusts I eat have corn. They apparently don't share lines in processing.

I had more of the Thai Kitchen coconut milk a few days later with no probs.

The honey was a weird one. It is dark honey I got from a local producer. It tastes fine, but I've suspected it before and thus put it in the back of the cabinet... But how would honey bee a problem?? (har-dee-har)

Got the coconut flour from Tropical Traditions. Appears to be as safe as you can get, gluten-wise.

Don't think it's just the coconut, since the milk has been fine since.

Anyway, have been dwelling on this for awhile now. Just need to think through all the possibilities.

Only other confounding factors: my awesome friends threw me a little baby shower last weekend. I ate some watermelon that one friend had cut up, although she said she was incredibly careful about CC. I also drank some Naked juice. Says GF, but does have natural flavors. I have wondered about it before. Can't just be from drinking juice, as I typically have some sort of juice about every day.

Hmm... just looked at the Naked juice site. Looks like there is shared production with a product that contains wheatgrass... interesting...

Perhaps my poor little cake is not to blame??

Too scared to take the rest out of the freezer and try it again. No matter how good it was. I was miserable, super hormonal (after all, I am about 9 months pregnant), and so beyond exhausted after last weekend that I vowed not to rock the boat again. At least til after SC Junior is here.

I will not eat cake, I will not eat cake, I will not eat cake.

SC

I once was lost...

but I'm back. Well, back as much as I was here before, which isn't much. Too much cooking to do! Oh, and there's this whole thing called work, too.

Ok, world, I think I'm ready to admit it for posterity. In case you didn't figure it out, your favorite sarcastic celiac is preggo.

Yep. One month of my new diet and BAM!! Oops.

I stuck with the "SCD/GAPS/pas de nightshades diet" for about a month after I was expecting, then had to give it up. Why?

Because sometimes, meat makes a preggers person want to throw up. And broccoli has a distinctive flavor of Mr. Clean. (not kidding). There was something about chicken, especially dark meat, that smelled like rot.

Plus, there was one day when I just hadn't eaten enough, and I got a terrible migraine aura. Freaked me out entirely. It had been awhile since the last one (years), so I was wondering if I was having a stroke... luckily, I figured it out before rushing to the ER, but not til after scaring my husband to death. The carrots and an orange I'd eaten that afternoon just hadn't cut it.

So that's when I started eating bad things like pasta, potatoes, tomatoes, even some sugar. I still stuck to whole foods as much as possible. The first trimester was basically me fighting cravings for things that I was unwilling to chance. I did give in to the chocolate chip cookies at one point though. (See previous post)

We're working on week 23 at this point, just for a frame of reference. The cravings/aversions aren't as bad. Things seem to be going ok other than the residual fatigue. (That I was JUST starting to get rid of by doing my diet... sigh...).

So anyway, I may post meal ideas and what I'm eating at the moment. I'll warn you though, it may have nothing to do with GAPS/SCD, and it may include nightshades. In fact, cooked tomatoes don't seem to bother me too much, so I've been doing a LOT of pizza and pasta. With cheese.

Well, that's my story. I'm sticking to it. Have a great week!

SC