Well, I can say we have completed the “challenge.”  We hit a major snag which required us to cut back in the dollars and cents department, so the first thing to go was the diet change.  Boo!!  It was going really well too!

There were some major lessons my family and I took from this challenge.  First, the meals were easy to make.  If you want to eat healthy, there does not have to be a grandiose plan full of health foods.  Vegetables and good clean meat are enough.

Second, flour is BAD!!  Any kind of flour really.  We stopped all consumption of bread for 4 weeks!  The first week was rough…what do you eat that doesn’t include bread or some kind of refined flour?  After that it was easy!  Reintroducing it….well, that was really rough for me.  I suspected that I was sensitive and maybe even allergic to gluten.  What I was unaware of was how it made my body feel when I ate it!  Wow!  If you are ever wondering or interested in knowing how your body reacts to a specific food, try eliminating it totally for at least a couple weeks.  Slowly introduce it back into your diet and observe how your body reacts.  When I reintroduced bread, I was very excited to eat it, so I had 4 slices!!!!  My advice to everyone:  NEVER DO THIS!!!  The top of my mouth itched.  I had extreme difficulty swallowing.  10 minutes after I had consumed my first piece….and consequently my second, third and fourth….I was off to the races…for the throne!  Horrible is how I describe that experience.

Despite all that, I realized the diet had been working.  Some other great information that came from our challenge:

1.  The only grains that are useful in any diet (because most people have issues with gluten due to their long standing overuse) are quinoa, amaranth, and brown rice.  I actually found pasta at Costco in Peterborough with spaghetti made only with these grains (which by the way, do not contain gluten).

2.  Ice cream does NOT require milk!!  I have made lime and mixed berry sherbet so many times now, that it is a breeze AND my daughter and the child I currently babysit request it….it is that good!  I’ll add the recipe at the end of this post.

3.  Pasta does not need to be made with flour!!  I bought a really cool slicer from Paderno, called the Spiral Slicer.  It is super easy to use and actually makes angel hair pasta out of any vegetable you want, no cooking required!  We all know that raw food is better, so why not?  Throw a chunk of squash in it and enjoy a quick easy side to your meal or a really healthy snack!  It’s totally worth it!  Plus we use it to make our own potato chips….who said chips with dinner was a bad thing?  Even the potato chips only take 12 minutes in the oven!

Paderno Spiral Slicer

4.  Sprouted seeds and nuts are amazing!!!  They contain 20- 30% protein content, are very easily digestible and they taste great!  I hate lentils, however sprouted lentils are so sweet and tasty!   If you want more information about sprouting, I came across this amazing site.

$26.12 at sproutpeople.org

It doesn’t matter if you try something and fail.  What really matters is that you have given it your best shot and have discovered something about yourself that you didn’t know before.  This diet really proved to me that planning is important.  It also proved that my diet is the most important thing in my life.  Your food makes you who you are, and I prefer to invest in my health today so I won’t have to spend tax-payers money in the future.

So…..recipes!! Yeah!!

Sherbet
2 egg whites beaten stiff
1-2 cups of fresh or frozen fruit or fruit juice
1/3 cup honey (unpasteurized is best for the health benefits)
Juice from 1 lemon
-Mix the fruit, honey and lemon juice in and bowl and let it sit for approximately 30 minutes, or until juicy.  Beat the egg whites of two eggs until stiff peaks form.  Put egg whites and fruit mixture (well stirred) into a blender and blend!  The longer you blend the easier it will be to scoop the sherbet once it is frozen.  I recommend freezing over night.  I will be attempting rainbow sherbet this coming week!

So, what do you do with the egg yolks??  Whip them up with the electric mixer and add 2-3 tablespoons of honey while whipping.  The yolks will never get stiff like the whites get when whipped, however they will turn whitish.  When they do, you have made Russian Custard and it is delicious!!  My daughter begs for it, plus it is quick and easy!